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Listen to “Neurolaw and Order,” a BBC World Service documentary hosted and narrated by Owen Jones, New York Alumni Chancellor’s Chair in Law and director of the MacArthur Foundation Research Network on Law and Neuroscience. The half-hour program explores how brain science is increasingly affecting the legal system’s approach to handling youthful criminal offenders. The documentary features engaging interviews with leading neuroscientists and psychologists, as well as with some offenders themselves.

The Intercept: How Wall Street silences womenNew data suggests that the financial services industry deserves scrutiny regarding workplace harassment. Joni Hersch, professor of law and economics, shares her research which suggests women are paid more in industries with a culture of harassment.

GreenBiz 350(podcast) interviewed Michael Vandenbergh, David Daniels Allen Distinguished Chair in Law, about what the private sector can do to increase environmental action and efficiency.

BBC: Neurolaw and orderOwen Jones, professor of law and biology, hosted BBC’s World Service documentary about neuroscience’s role in America’s justice system.

CNN: Chris Christie goes to the Supreme Court on sports bettingRobert Mikos, professor of law, is mentioned as filing an amicus curiae, also known as a friend-of-the-court brief, in support of New Jersey in a Supreme Court case set for Monday that will hear Gov. Chris Christie’s challenge to a federal law that bans most states from sports betting. Mikos is quoted.

November 2017

The New York Times: Book Review: 100 Notable Books of 2017The Crisis of the Middle-Class Constitution: Why Economic Inequality Threatens Our Republic, by Ganesh Sitaraman, associate professor of law, was named one of the top 100 books of the year by the publication.

ABC News: How the impeachment process worksDemocrats have been calling for impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump, with varying levels of seriousness. Here is a breakdown of the presidential impeachment process. Suzanna Sherry, professor of law, is quoted.

October 2017

National Journal: The steep unknown costs of sexual harassment - October 31, 2017 - High-profile cases have brought renewed attention to the issue, but the long-term health and economic costs to victims and businesses are not well understood. Joni Hersch, Cornelius Vanderbilt Chair, professor of law and economics, is quoted.

Knoxville News Sentinel: Public defenders to state Supreme Court: Show us the money - October 10, 2017 - Susan Kay, clinical professor of law and associate dean for clinical affairs, is a member of the Tennessee Supreme Court’s Indigent Representation Task Force. She is featured in a photo taken during the task force’s stop at the University of Tennessee’s College of Law in May 2016.

September 2017

The New York Times Magazine: When ‘Not Guilty’ is a Life Sentence - September 27, 2017 - Defendants found not guilty by reason of insanity are often placed in involuntary confinement in state psychiatric hospitals with no hope of escape. Christopher Slobogin, professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, is quoted.

NPR (On Point) did a live interview with Ganesh Sitaraman, professor of law, about an Op-Ed he wrote for the New York Times regarding his research on the vanishing middle class in America. September 20, 2017

Washington Lawyer: Law School in the Modern Era - September 1, 2017 - Article highlights classes focused on the real-world aspects of practicing law. J.B. Ruhl, director, program in law and innovation, is quoted and the Program on Law and Innovation is featured.

Boston Review: Inside Joe Arpaio’s Tent City - August 30, 2017 - Colin Dayan, Robert Penn Warren Professor in Humanities and professor of law, writes about interviewing former Maricopa County, Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio in 1995 for a book she had planned to write on chain gangs. Photos taken by Dayan accompany the article.

U.S. News & World Report: Opinion: Trump's Attack on the Rule of Law - August 28, 2017 - The pardon last week of former Maricopa County, Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio by President Donald Trump was an egregious act, one that did substantial damage to the rule of law in the United States. Not surprisingly, it unleashed a storm of criticism. Colin Dayan, Robert Penn Warren Professor in the Humanities and professor of law, is quoted.

BNN(Canada) interviewed Tim Meyer, professor of law, about President Trump’s comments that the US may leave the NAFTA agreement. The live interview was conducted using VUStar, Vanderbilt’s broadcast facility

Nashville Post: Turner support yields VU law school clinic - August 23, 2017 - Vanderbilt Law School has announced it will use $2 million, provided by a fund started by alumnus and philanthropist Cal Turner Jr., to establish the Turner Family Community Enterprise Clinic, which will offer legal support to entrepreneurs on limited budgets. Chris Guthrie, dean and John Wade-Kent Syverud professor of law, and Lauren Rogal, assistant clinical professor of law, are quoted.

Vox: Some racist, homophobic chants in Charlottesville may not be protected under 1st Amendment - August 15, 2017 - There is no question that Americans have the right to express racist, offensive, unpopular views under the First Amendment — it’s a right that has been repeatedly upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court. But the right-wing demonstrators in Charlottesville, Virginia, last weekend may have gone too far when they began chanting racial and homophobic slurs to specific people. It’s a gray area of constitutional law, but experts said this week that the white supremacists may have crossed a line into what is known as unprotected speech. David Hudson, adjunct professor of law and a First Amendment expert, is quoted.

The Boston Globe: Experts see a federal crackdown on marijuana as unlikely - August 8, 2017 - At a gathering of policy makers on Monday, Robert Mikos, professor of law, participated in a panel of experts that addressed a big question entrepreneurs will face in certain states as to whether the federal government will crack down on state-sanctioned marijuana businesses, which remain illegal under federal law. Mikos is quoted. The story also appeared in Sentinel and Enterprise (Massachusetts).

July 2017

Bloomberg: Opinion: Bank CDs and a strip-club hedge fund - July 20, 2017 - Banks and regulators care a lot about the nuances of banks’ capital structures. The purpose of a bank is to issue cash-like risk-free senior liabilities and invest the proceeds in risky lending activities, but in modern legal systems there is a problem with these hierarchies. Research by Yesha Yadav, professor of law, is mentioned.

Associated Press: Lawyer: Marijuana prohibition laws unconstitutional - July 17, 2017 - A Connecticut lawyer is hoping his arguments in a drug case eventually are used by attorneys across the country to fight marijuana charges and bans on pot possession. Aaron Romano says many state laws criminalizing marijuana were based on the federal Marihuana Tax Act of 1937, which essentially criminalized marijuana by imposing harsh financial penalties. He argues the federal law was rooted in racism and bigotry against blacks and Mexicans and therefore was unconstitutional, as are the state bans based on the law including Connecticut’s. Robert Mikos, professor of law, is quoted.

Nashville Lifestyles: How Nashville is becoming a more sustainable city - July 10, 2017 - As Nashville’s population swells, local restaurants and institutions are taking on the task of diverting food waste from overflowing landfills toward more sustainable uses. Linda Breggin, an environmental lawyer and adjunct professor of law at Vanderbilt, is quoted about her work as a project coordinator for the Nashville Food Waste Initiative.

Daily Report (Georgia): Fresh off the press first casebook on pot law - July 7, 2017 - Five years after Washington and Colorado kicked off the recreational pot craze, lawyers and law students are getting their first casebook on the law and policy of marijuana. Robert Mikos, professor of law, this month published “Marijuana Law, Policy, and Authority”—a nearly 800-page tome that explores different approaches to cannabis regulation at federal, state and local levels.

Hamilton County Herald: ‘Stand your Ground’ isn’t that simple - July 7, 2017 - Tennessee is among 32 so-called “stand your ground states” in which people don’t have to retreat before using force to defend themselves. But the law isn’t simple to apply. Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Chair in Law, is quoted.

Elle (U.K.): ‘The Pregnancy Pause’: LinkedIn’s latest job category helping working mothers explain CV gaps - July 5, 2017 - Whether it’s a gap year travelling the world, or a change of jobs every year until the age of 27, it’s not uncommon for a budding employee to have concerns when it comes to glaring gaps on their CV. When it comes to maternity leave, the advice is often ‘don’t ask, don’t tell,’ according to The New York Times, with many women fearful that admitting they’ve been a stay-at-home mother may result in discrimination during the hiring process and in the workplace. Research by Joni Hersch, professor of law and economics, is mentioned. A similar story appeared in Harper's Bazaar.

Salon: Government action isn’t enough for climate change. The private sector can cut billions of tons of carbon - July 5, 2017 - With President Trump’s announcement to pull the United States out of the Paris Agreement, many other countries around the world — and cities and states within the U.S. — are stepping up their commitments to address climate change. We’ve studied the role of the private sector in addressing climate change, and we’re convinced that the next stage is going to require more than just political agreement. What is needed is a concerted effort to mobilize private action, write Michael Vandenbergh, David Daniels Allen Distinguished Professor of Law and director of the Climate Change Research Network, and Jonathan M. Gilligan, associate professor of earth and environmental sciences, in this piece first published by The Conversation.

June 2017

Daily Business Review (Miami): Should Florida change how it picks Supreme Court justices? - June 23, 2017 - As Florida looks to revise its constitution, it might do well to switch up the selection and retention process for Supreme Court justices, professors argued at the Florida Bar Convention in Boca Raton. That’s because research shows judicial nominating commissions like Florida’s, with some members chosen by the bar, tend to pick judges who are more liberal than the state’s population. Brian Fitzpatrick, professor of law, is quoted.

CBS News: What is the future of privacy, surveillance and policing technologies under Trump? - June 22, 2017 - President Trump has said little of how he intends to approach the authority he now wields over the country’s surveillance policies. As developing policing technologies continue to outpace laws restricting their use, experts in constitutional law and civil liberties fear the lack of an accompanying conversation on privacy protections could contribute to the erosion of Fourth Amendment rights. Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law, is quoted.

MarketWatch: How stay-at-home moms can get credit for diaper changes on their résumés - June 20, 2017 - A New York City ad agency has invented a fictional company called The Pregnancy Pause — complete with logo, website, and phone number — that women can list on their résumés as their “employer” during the time they spend away from work raising kids. Women who have a résumé gap and don’t explain it are far less likely to get hired than those who do explain the gap, according to a study co-authored by Jennifer Bennett Shinall, assistant professor of law, and Joni Hersch, professor of law and economics. Shinall is quoted in the article.

Associated Press: Court: Required minimum juvenile sentences should be rare - June 19, 2017 - The Iowa Supreme Court on Friday ruled that mandatory minimum sentences for juveniles before the chance of parole should be “uncommon,” making it among the most aggressive states in curtailing such required prison time. The 4-3 opinion illustrates how heavily divided Iowa’s highest court remains on the treatment of juvenile offenders. Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law, is quoted.

The Atlantic: The dangers of arming autocrats - June 13, 2017 - On June 8, while official Washington sat captivated by the testimony of former FBI Director James Comey, a small group of bipartisan senators planned to force a vote on a subject near to official Washington’s heart: arms sales to Saudi Arabia. The article includes a quote from a legal assessment Michael Newton, professor of the practice of law, prepared for the American Bar Association’s Center for Human Rights on the arms sales.

The Quint: Trump appoints Amul Thapar as judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals - June 2, 2017 - Amul Thapar, adjunct professor of law, has been appointed a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit by President Donald Trump. Before his appointment to the Court of Appeals, Thapar served on the District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky. Thapar was confirmed last week by the Senate 52–44 in a vote on party lines. A related article appeared on India.com.

WNET (New York) interviewed Ganesh Sitaraman, associate professor of law, about his book and his views on the constitutional importance of the middle class.

New York Times: Book Review: New and noteworthy books on military history, from Afghanistan to Waterloo - May 26, 2017 - Thunder in The Mountains: Chief Joseph Oliver, Otis Howard and the Nez Perce War by Daniel Sharfstein, Tarkington Professor of Law and professor of history, offers a brisk narrative of one of the last major collisions between Native Americans and white America. His two main characters are complex and compelling — Chief Joseph, a thoughtful, powerful speaker who spent years trying to find a way for his people to live alongside American settlers, and General O. O. Howard, a moralistic liberal Army general whose fate it was to crush Joseph’s small Nez Perce tribe.

KAET (Arizona PBS) aired a report about the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals that featured video of Professor of Law Brian Fitzpatrick testifying before a House Judiciary subcommittee in March. Fitzpatrick testified that the large size of the 9th Circuit, which includes Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon and Washington state, may explain why its decisions are so often reversed by the U.S. Supreme Court.

The American Conservative: Opinion: Congress must oppose the Saudi arms deal - May 24, 2017 - Because it is likely that at least some of the weapons being sold to the Saudis will be used in the commission of war crimes and because the Saudi-led coalition has already committed many such crimes against Yemen, there is a strong argument that the sale itself would be illegal. It falls to Congress to try to rein in U.S. support for the war on Yemen. Failure to do so will further deepen U.S. complicity in wrecking and starving Yemen, writes columnist Daniel Larison. He cites a 23-page legal opinion sent to the U.S. Senate by Michael Newton, professor of the practice of law.

Time: The big problem with President Trump’s record arms deal with Saudi Arabia - May 22, 2017 - Much of the military hardware from a nearly $110 billion arms deal between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia will likely be pressed into service in the Saudi fight against its neighbor Yemen, where more than 10,000 people have been killed during two years of heavy airstrikes and fighting. This puts the U.S. in a precarious ethical position, say human rights groups and former U.S. officials. In a legal opinion sent to the U.S. Senate on May 19, the American Bar Association’s Human Rights Center argued that continued arms sales are illegal under American laws that ban sales to states that violate international law. The article quotes the opinion, which was authored by Michael Newton, professor of the practice of law. A related article in The Huffington Post also quotes Newton’s opinion.

The Tennessean: CoreCivic sees volatility as ‘Trump trade’ - May 22, 2017 - After mounting a full recovery under the Trump administration, shares of Nashville-based prison operator CoreCivic declined amid a volatile week for the president. Shares of CoreCivic, formerly called Corrections Corporation of America, fell 8 percent in three days last week. Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law, is quoted.

The Villages Suntimes: Comey’s unceremonious firing boomerangs on Trump - May 19, 2017 - If the Trump administration deemed it appropriate, Putin said the Russian Federation could hand over a transcript of Trump’s meeting with Lavrov to U.S. lawmakers to reassure them that no secrets were revealed. And while Comey himself has been silent, his associates have been exposing intriguing details of his encounters with Trump. Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law, is quoted. The Villages Suntimes also used Slobogin’s quote in two related articles.

Roughly Speaking, a podcast of the Baltimore Sun, interviewed Daniel Sharfstein, Tarkington Professor of Law and professor of history, about his new book Thunder in The Mountains: Chief Joseph Oliver, Otis Howard and the Nez Perce War.

McClatchy Washington Bureau: Choosing Sen. John Cornyn could help Trump move on from FBI controversy - May 15, 2017 - John Cornyn, the senior senator from Texas, is the highest-profile name under official consideration to serve as FBI director under Trump after the president abruptly fired James Comey last week. Brian Fitzpatrick, professor of law, who worked as Cornyn’s special counsel on the Supreme Court nominations of John Roberts and Samuel Alito, is quoted.

HBOinterviewed Brian Fitzpatrick, professor of law, about his views on the recent push to break up the ninth circuit court.

Bloomberg BNA: Can you hear them now? Robbers ask SCOTUS for phone privacy - May 10, 2017 - Three separate cases representing one of the latest applications of old law to new technology is currently set before the U.S. Supreme Court. All three defendants were convicted at trial based partly on cell site evidence and their appeals are now asking the Justices to impose a burden on law enforcement that currently doesn’t exist: a warrant requirement for historical cell site location information, which shows which cell towers were used to service particular mobile phones. Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Chair in Law, is quoted.

USA Today: Why Trump’s executive order on religion won’t change how some pastors preach - May 5, 2017 - President Trump, who signed an executive order Thursday aimed at relaxing restrictions on politicking from the pulpit, said clergy now are free to say what they want without being targeted by the taxman. But some pastors from across the USA say it won’t affect how they preach to their congregations. Beverly Moran, professor of law, is quoted.

The Conversation: Court ruling is a first step toward controlling air pollution from livestock farms - May 5, 2017 - On April 11, 2017, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit struck down a rule, issued by the Environmental Protection Agency in 2008, that exempted livestock farms from reporting hazardous air emissions from animal waste. Unless EPA appeals to the Supreme Court, these farms will have to report releases of substances such as ammonia and hydrogen sulfide starting later this year. Three scholars, including J.B. Ruhl, David Daniels Allen Distinguished Chair in Law, offer their views.

Huffington Post: Can American democracy survive the era of inequality? - April 19, 2017 - Inequality is not the breakdown of an awesome machine. It is a political crisis one that threatens the very foundations of American government, according to a startling new book by Vanderbilt University Law School Associate Professor Ganesh Sitaraman. In The Crisis of the Middle-Class Constitution, Sitaraman argues persuasively that the American Constitution requires a robust middle class to operate, and will break down in the face of prolonged, severe economic inequality. Sitaraman is quoted in the article and interviewed on a podcast embedded in the article.

Financial Times (United Kingdom): Judges second-guess value established in competitive M&A process - April 19, 2017 - The mathematics behind setting values for shares by Delaware corporate law judge Andre Bouchard has set off a firestorm in the state that boasts the United States’ most sophisticated corporate law court. The controversy is partially about Chancellor Bouchard’s technical judgments. However, the broader question is why judges spend time “playing investment banker without commensurate compensation” as one journal described the way the state handles such lawsuits. A recent publication is mentioned and table included by Randall Thomas, John S. Beasley II Professor of Law and Business. A subscription may be required for access.

Ganesh Sitaraman, associate professor of law, was a featured guest on WDET-FM (Detroit), discussing his new book, The Crisis of the Middle-Class Constitution.

Bitcoin: Legal field embraces promising use cases for blockchain tech - April 11, 2017 - On April 7, attorneys and tech luminaries gathered at Vanderbilt University for “Blockchain and the Law,” a conference dedicated to the future of distributed ledger technology in the legal realm. The event, sponsored by Vanderbilt Law School’s Program on Law and Innovation, along with several local law and media firms, offered a chance for leaders at the fledgling cross-section between the worlds to give brief, TedTalk-esque presentations to a wider audience. Larry Bridgesmith, adjunct professor of law and coordinator of POLI, was quoted. The story also ran in Nasdaq.

ThinkProgress: The real losers from Trump’s border wall: ranchers, homeowners, and taxpayers - April 5, 2017 - Conservatives have railed against the seizure of private property for nonpublic use but have been curiously silent when it comes to the seizure of people’s homes and land for a project they like — the building of the Keystone XL tar sands oil pipeline. Now the Trump administration is preparing to launch another major push to take private property: This time, the seizures will take place along the southern border to facilitate the construction of a border wall. James Ely, Milton R. Underwood Chair in Free Enterprise, Emeritus, is quoted.

AirTalk onKPCC Los Angeles, interviewed Associate Professor of Law Ganesh Sitaraman about his research on the societal implications of a shrinking middle class. The live interview was conducted using VUStar, Vanderbilt’s broadcast facility.

The Huffington Post: Vanderbilt affiliates’ PredictGov uses machine learning to forecast Congress - April 1, 2017 - A new website that forecasts Congressional bills’ success predicted the Affordable Care Act replacement bill would be shelved, awarding it a 15 percent chance of enactment. PredictGov, which uses big data and artificial intelligence to reach its conclusions, is the invention of a team of researchers that includes J.B. Ruhl, David Daniels Allen Distinguished Professor of Law, and John Nay, a Vanderbilt doctoral student in integrated computational decision science. Ruhl and Nay are quoted.

March 2017

The New York Times Book Review: It’s not just unfair: Inequality is a threat to our governancePresident Obama labeled income inequality “the defining challenge of our time.” But why exactly? And why “our time” especially? These questions are at the heart of The Crisis of the Middle-Class Constitution: Why Economic Inequality Threatens Our Republic, a new book by Ganesh Sitaraman, associate professor of law. The book is reviewed by Angus Deaton, a Nobel Prize winner and professor emeritus at Princeton. A related article about the book appeared on BillMoyers.com.

CSPAN3 (National), CSPAN2 (National) and ABC News (National) aired live confirmation hearings on Judge Neil Gorsuch, nominated for a position on the Supreme Court. Timothy Meyer, professor of law, who clerked for Judge Gorsuch from 2007 to 2008, was interviewed as a member of the witness panel

The Atlantic: Can the country survive without a strong middle class? - March 22, 2017 - In his new book, The Crisis of the Middle-Class Constitution, Ganesh Sitaraman, associate professor of law, argues that the Constitution doesn’t merely require a particular political system but also a particular economic one, one characterized by a strong middle class and relatively mild inequality. A strong middle class, Sitaraman writes, inspires a sense of shared purpose and shared fate, without which the system of government will fall apart. In this article Atlantic writer Rebecca Rosen interviews Sitaraman about the book.

Nashville Post: Federal court getting creative as vacancies mount - March 22, 2017 - When the chief federal judge in the Middle District of Tennessee steps down next month, the court is turning to federal judges from Detroit and elsewhere, as well as its own magistrate judges, to pick up some slack until two new judges can be appointed by President Donald Trump and confirmed by the U.S. Senate. Tracey George, Charles B. Cox III and Lucy D. Cox Family Professor of Law and Liberty, is quoted.

WNYC interviewed Tim Meyer, professor of law and former clerk for Supreme Court nominee Judge Neil Gorsuch, about the judge’s nomination to the Supreme Court. The segment was broadcast to NPR affiliates across the country

MSNBCincluded Tim Meyer, professor of law, on a panel discussing Judge Gorsuch and how his personal views may influence his abilities on the Supreme Court.

Bloomberg Law: Trump attacks on 9th circuit spark debate at breakup hearing - March 17, 2017 - President Donald Trump’s recent criticism of the Ninth Circuit was featured at a congressional hearing on whether it should be divided. His comments cast a new light on an issue Congress has considered for decades: whether the circuit is too large to function properly. Brian Fitzpatrick, professor of law, who provided testimony at the hearing, is mentioned. Related stories were published by The Recorder and Cronkite News.

KAET-PBS (Phoenix) reported on a Congressional hearing about restructuring the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. Brian Fitzpatrick, professor of law, testified at the hearing. The hearing was broadcast on C-SPAN3.

Associated Press: Advocates say First Amendment can withstand Trump attacks - March 13, 2017 - This week journalism marks its annual Sunshine Week, which draws attention to the media’s role in advocating for government transparency, at an extraordinary moment in the relationship between the presidency and the press. First Amendment advocates call the Trump administration the most hostile to the press and free expression in memory. David Hudson, adjunct professor of law, is quoted.

The Cannabist: Federal marijuana law enforcement: What you need to know - March 7, 2017 - No official federal policy change toward marijuana has been made—yet. The Cannabist talked with several law and drug policy experts, industry observers and state officials about what changes in federal enforcement could look like—from the threat of raids on cannabis businesses and seizure of state-collected pot taxes to court issues and the ways Colorado regulations have developed. Robert Mikos, professor of law, is among the experts who were interviewed for the article.

The Street: M and A litigation moves away from Delaware - March 6, 2017 - Patterns of merger litigation have changed significantly in response to developments in Delaware law, according to a recent paper co-authored by Randall S. Thomas, John S. Beasley II Professor of Law and Business. Lawyers for stockholder plaintiffs have filed fewer fiduciary duty cases in Delaware since disclosure-only settlements were barred last year, the researchers found.

Vocativ: Do sex offenders have a free speech right to use Facebook? - March 6, 2017 - The constitutionality of a 2008 North Carolina law intended as protection of past and potential victims of sex offenders is now the subject of a U.S. Supreme Court case. The question is whether the law infringes on a North Carolina man’s free speech rights — and by extension, whether or not social media is a medium of communication inherently protected under the First Amendment. First Amendment expert David Hudson, adjunct professor of law, is quoted.

Lafayette Journal and Courier (Indiana): Delphi killings: Social media rumors carry hefty consequences - March 6, 2017 - Rumors that police arrested a man in Kokomo, Indiana, for the Feb. 13 murders of two local teenagers forced police to go to social media to declare the rumors are not true. Investigators’ response is a sign of how social media shrank our world seemingly overnight while giving voice for whomever has an opinion — be it reasoned or daft. First Amendment expert David Hudson, adjunct professor of law, is quoted.

February 2017

Bustle: How Neil Gorsuch could significantly harm LGBTQ rights - February 27, 2017 - On Jan. 31, President Donald Trump officially nominated Neil Gorsuch, a federal appellate judge, to fill the vacant Supreme Court seat. While Gorsuch was a more moderate pick than some analysts had anticipated, critics were quick to point out he could be bad news for the LGBTQ community. Brian Fitzpatrick, professor of law, is quoted.

The Ledger: Sullum: Study confirms health advantages of vaping - February 21, 2017 - A recent study confirmed that e-cigarettes are much less dangerous than the traditional, combustible sort — a fact that may come as a surprise to Americans. This study, which involved long-term e-cigarette users, reinforces the results of a 2016 study finding large reductions in toxins and carcinogens among smokers who switched to vaping during a two-week experiment. The article references a survey conducted by W. Kip Viscusi, University Distinguished Professor of Law, Economics and Management, about the public’s perception about the hazards of e-cigarettes.

C-SPAN interviewed David Hudson, adjunct professor of law, regarding his historical perspective on the limits of free speech.

The Wall Street Journal: Does it pay to double major? - February 13, 2017 - The benefits of a double major in college seem obvious. By gaining expertise in two different areas, many believe, students will have a significant edge when it comes to launching and advancing a career. But a recent paper published in the Journal of Benefit-Cost Analysis casts doubt on that thinking. Co-author Joni Hersch, professor of law and economics, is interviewed.

Financial Times: Q&A with author Alexandra Kleeman (subscription required) - February 13, 2017 - In this interview, author Alexandra Kleeman mentions The Law Is a White Dog by Colin Dayan, Robert Penn Warren Professor in the Humanities, professor of American studies and professor of law, as one of the books currently on her bedside table.

The Grand Island Independent (Nebraska): Short circuit: Bill aims to deep-six 9th - February 10, 2017 - The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals represents nine states, 20 percent of the U.S. population and 40 percent of the nation’s land mass. It’s so big that Congress has looked at bills to split the circuit since 1941, and it’s so big that none of those measures have succeeded. This year, however, Sens. Jeff Flake and John McCain, both R-Ariz., see the possibility of success. Brian Fitzpatrick, professor of law, is quoted.

Tim Meyer, professor of law and former clerk for Supreme Court nominee Judge Neil Gorsuch, discussed Gorsuch’s nomination as a guest on The Laura Ingraham Show (syndicated nationally). He was also interviewed on WSMV, Channel 4 in Nashville.

Las Vegas Review-Journal: Bill to remove Nevada, 5 other states from ‘nutty 9th’ Circuit Court may be gaining favor - February 8, 2017 - How big is the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals? The San-Francisco-based circuit is so big that it represents nine states, including Nevada, 20 percent of the U.S. population and 40 percent of the nation’s land mass. This year, however, Sens. Jeff Flake and John McCain, both R-Ariz., have introduced legislation to create a new 12th Circuit by peeling away six states — Nevada, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Arizona and Alaska. The slimmed-down 9th Circuit would continue to hear appeals from California, Oregon and Hawaii, as well as Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands. Brian Fitzpatrick, professor of law, is quoted.

Brian T. Fitzpatrick, professor of law and former clerk for the late Justice Antonin Scalia, was a guest on MSNBC Live discussing President Trump’s nomination of Neil Gorsuch for the U.S. Supreme Court.

USA Today: Can Trump pull funding from UC Berkeley? Not likely, experts say - February 6, 2017 - President Donald Trump’s threat early Thursday to pull federal funding from the University of California’s flagship Berkeley campus over violent protests against a controversial speaker may sound serious, but it is essentially toothless, experts said. David Hudson, adjunct professor of law, is quoted.

Hospital Review: Apology laws don’t help physicians avoid malpractice suits, study finds - February 3, 2017 - More than 30 states have adopted apology laws that prohibit a physician’s apology to a patient from being admissible in a malpractice lawsuit. Although apology laws are intended to reduce malpractice lawsuits by allowing physicians to freely express their condolences or apologies to patients or their families, a recent study from Vanderbilt University found these laws do not limit medical malpractice liability risk. The article was co-authored by Benjamin J. McMichael, a postdoctoral scholar at Vanderbilt’s Owen Graduate School of Management; Larry Van Horn, associate professor of management at Owen Graduate School of Management; and W. Kip Viscusi, University Distinguished Professor of Law, Economics and Management at Vanderbilt Law School.

Colorado Springs Independent: Suppression is the goal of many ‘free speech zones’ - February 1, 2017 - The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution is clear: “Congress shall make no law … abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” That, of course, has not prevented the government from trying to suppress or contain speech in the years since the 1791 adoption of the Bill of Rights. And one of the most popular tools for doing so is the ubiquitous “free speech zone” or “First Amendment zone.” The areas, which are sometimes fenced off, are set up for protesters or others who want to express opinions. David L. Hudson Jr., adjunct professor of law, is quoted.

January 2017

Washington Post: Opinion: When one sibling has darker skin than the other - January 31, 2017 - In her book “Same Family, Different Colors,” Lori L. Tharps explores the impact on families when members have varying shades of skin color and the reaction in society when an individual has a darker, or unexpected, skin tone, writes the author. Research by Joni Hersch, professor of law and economics, is referenced.

Salon: President Trump takes on federal workforce, but will have to handle resistance first - January 31, 2017 - On Jan. 20, President Trump became the head of a sprawling federal bureaucracy, which contains more than 200 organizations with unique opportunities and complex challenges. Any new executive assuming control will want to identify parts of their organization that are performing at a high level and, perhaps more importantly, parts that are not. There is a lot riding on the president’s management choices, writes David Lewis, William R. Kenan Jr. Professor of Political Science in this essay originally published by The Conversation.

The National Law Journal: Preparing lawyers to be practice-ready in a tech-driven world - January 27, 2017 - Getting law students practice-ready by graduation has always been a challenge for law schools, but many schools have begun to look beyond traditional legal training to enable students to compete in an increasingly tech-driven legal market. Larry W. Bridgesmith, adjunct professor of law and coordinator of the Program on Law and Innovation, is quoted. (Subscription required). A related story was posted by Law.com.

Nashville Post: Report: Chief federal judge stepping down - January 26, 2017 - The chief federal judge in the Middle District of Tennessee will step down in April in an unexpected move that gives President Trump an opportunity to further shape the bench in Nashville. Tracey George, Charles B. Cox III and Lucy D. Cox Family Professor of Law and Liberty, is quoted. George is also quoted in a related article in the Nashville Scene.

Thomson Reuters: Making cities more resilient to climate change - January 26, 2017 - It’s uncertain whether president-elect Donald Trump will follow through with his campaign promise to back out of the Paris Agreement on climate change. However, The Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energyhas made its commitment clear. Christopher Serkin, professor of law and associate dean for research, is quoted.

Associated Press: GOP targets landmark Endangered Species Act for big changes - January 17, 2017 - In control of Congress and soon the White House, Republicans are readying plans to roll back the influence of the Endangered Species Act, one of the government’s most powerful conservation tools, after decades of complaints that it hinders drilling, logging and other activities. J.B. Ruhl, David Daniels Allen Distinguished Professor of Law, is quoted. Similar stories were reported in the Christian Science Monitor and Salon.

Bradenton Herald (Florida): Miami Beach tells restaurant sax player to can it. Owner says: ‘Free speech!’ - January 17, 2017 - Earlier this month, a city code inspector told a brunch-time saxophone player at a trendy restaurant in South Beach to take five. You see, only “non-amplified piano and string instruments” are allowed to serenade diners in the Beach’s South of Fifth neighborhood, city code says. So the sax music had to stop. Now, the owners of Bakehouse Brasserie are suing the city in civil court, claiming the ban on brass, woodwind and percussion instruments infringes on their constitutionally protected right to free speech. David Hudson, adjunct professor of law, is quoted.

Times Free Press (Chattanooga, Tennessee): Bankruptcies fall to 10-year low, but Tennessee still leads nation in going broke - January 16, 2017 - The number of Chattanoogans going broke last year fell to the lowest level in a decade while local property foreclosures dropped to the lowest number since the turn of the century. But Tennessee still leads the nation in the share of households and businesses filing for bankruptcy. Larry Ahern, adjunct professor of law, is quoted.

The Arizona Republic (Phoenix): What’s the point of the Electoral College? - December 19, 2016 - In the aftermath of a nasty, emotionally bruising and divisive national election, die-hard Trump foes are trying to sow dissent in the 538-member Electoral College, a compromise forged at the Constitutional Convention of 1787 that some argue is an anachronism in today’s political world. Kareem Crayton, visiting professor of law, is quoted.

Bloomberg BNA: Be gentle when challenging the judge’s handpicked expert - December 16, 2016 - When a judge appoints his own expert to help him with a complex case, should the expert be subject to the same reliability standards as traditional party experts? Legal observers are split, with some saying it’s a fool’s errand for a litigant to challenge the judge’s chosen expert. Edward Cheng, professor of law and the Tarkington Professor of Teaching Excellence, is quoted.

Inside Higher Ed: Opinion: Teaching negotiation in the Age of Trump - December 12, 2016 - Brian Farkas, a business litigator in New York and adjunct professor at the City University of New York and Brooklyn Law School, writes about how he incorporates discussions of President-elect Donald Trump into classes he teaches on negotiation. Farkas mentions research by Chris Guthrie, dean of Vanderbilt Law School and John Wade-Kent Syverud Professor of Law.

Vox: We’re about to see states’ rights used defensively against Trump- December 12, 2016 - These days, federalism is an extraordinarily powerful weapon in politics for both the left and the right. It can be a source of progressive resistance and, far more importantly, a source for compromise between both sides. The article quotes Robert Mikos, professor of law, about states’ efforts to challenge federal marijuana law.

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: Plum students sent home for wearing Confederate attire - December 12, 2016 - Administrators at Plum High School are offering counseling for students after several of their classmates came to school last week wearing clothing adorned with Confederate flags. David Hudson, adjunct professor of law and First Amendment expert, is quoted.

Los Angeles Times: Warning: That warning label may be useless in conveying danger - December 6, 2016 - Chances are, you encounter so many warning labels on a daily basis that you no longer bother reading them. And even if you do, it’s nearly impossible to determine if a product represents a true hazard or if you’re just encountering a bunch of weasel words designed solely to avoid lawsuits. The article mentions a recent paper in the Harvard Business Review about the ineffectiveness of such labels. W. Kip Viscusi, University Distinguished Professor of Law, Economics and Management, who co-authored the paper, is quoted.

Chicago Tribune: Trump tweet suggests criminalizing flag desecration, sparks debate- December 5, 2016 - The controversy over flag burning reignited last week after President-elect Donald Trump tweeted on the subject early Tuesday morning: “Nobody should be allowed to burn the American flag—if they do, there must be consequences—perhaps loss of citizenship or year in jail!” Although the tweet didn’t offer context, it prompted quick response from those on both sides of the issue. David Hudson, adjunct professor of law and First Amendment expert, is quoted.

The Dallas Morning News: How everyday investors can make money by peeking into the dark pools- December 5, 2016 - An increasingly important segment of the stock market, “dark pools” are lightly-regulated private trading venues set up typically by large investment banks, such as Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Barclays and Credit Suisse. Large investors daily buy and sell millions of shares of stocks and exchange traded funds anonymously in these dark pools. They have been around for years, and yet few small investors know of their existence. But they should. Research by Yesha Yadav, professor of law, is mentioned.

December 2, 2016 - KETR (Commerce, Texas) interviewed Edward Rubin, University Professor of Law and Political Science, about his book, Soul, Self, and Society: The New Morality and the Modern State.

Harvard Business Review: Opinion: Consumer warning labels aren’t working - December 1, 2016 - W. Kip Viscusi, University Distinguished Professor of Law, Economics and Management, and his co-authors Lisa A. Robinson and Richard Zeckhauser, both of Harvard University, write that consumer warning labels are not effective because the present system fails miserably at distinguishing between large and small risks.

BBC (U.K.): Fat people earn less and have a harder time finding work- December 1, 2016 - Even when they’re able to do the job competently, obese people routinely face discrimination in the workplace. While discrimination against employees because of their sex, age, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion or disabilities is illegal in a growing number of countries, including the U.K., many businesses still consider it perfectly acceptable to fire—or to refuse to hire—obese individuals. Jennifer Shinall, assistant professor of law, whose research examines the effects of obesity on the labor market, is quoted.

November 2016

ABA Journal: Fishing for Bias: Wildlife research techniques find gaps in court record - November 29, 2016 - Richard Leo is one of a handful of nationally recognized experts in the psychological science of how people are influenced and make decisions under duress. When defense attorneys began to call on him to testify in cases in which a confession might have been coerced, he says, prosecutors often fought vigorously to exclude his testimony. Now Edward Cheng, professor of law, says he’s discovered that publication bias in court records can conceal how often experts are allowed to testify, and he’s found a way to prove it. Cheng is quoted.

ABC News: Defense secretary contender James Mattis faces legal obstacle to getting the post - November 22, 2016 - The saying is “Once a Marine, always a Marine,” and if President-elect Donald Trump picks retired Gen. James Mattis for secretary of defense, he is still too much a Marine in the eyes of the law. Mattis retired in 2013, leaving him four years short of the requisite seven years after active duty before commissioned officers may serve as secretary of defense. David Lewis, William R. Kenan, Jr. Professor of Political Science, is quoted.

Citizen-Times (Asheville, North Carolina): Wuerth to lecture on international law at UNC Asheville - November 22, 2016 - Ingrid Wuerth, Helen Strong Curry Professor of International Law, will present a talk titled “International Law in the Age of Trump: A Post-Human Rights Agenda” at UNC Asheville on Dec. 6 as the final 2016 lecture in the World Affairs Council series.

U.S. News & World Report: For public health, is alcohol the next tobacco? - November 21, 2016 - The U.S. Surgeon General’s office has issued the agency’s first-ever report on addiction, which includes proposals for restricting alcohol access that critics say go too far and could end up targeting usage among even casual drinkers. Christopher Carpenter, professor of economics, law, public policy and education, and health policy, is quoted.

New York Times: Trump’s Supreme Court list: Ivy League? Out. The Heartland? In. - November 15, 2016 - In important ways, President-elect Donald Trump’s Supreme Court candidates represent a sharp break from the current conservative justices, who all went to law school at Harvard or Yale and who all served on federal appeals courts in the Northeast or in California. If the list has a main theme, it is that there are plenty of good judges who went to law school at places like Notre Dame, Marquette, the University of Georgia and the University of Miami. About half of Mr. Trump’s candidates sit on state Supreme Courts, and almost all those who sit on federal appeals courts do so in the heartland. Brian Fitzpatrick, professor of law, is quoted.

The Wrap: Trump vs. press freedom: How much damage can he do? - November 16, 2016 - If you followed Donald Trump’s Twitter feed — and no other source of information about American life — you might think the greatest threat to our nation is The New York Times. But what, if anything, can he actually do? How much of a threat could he pose to the First Amendment? Vanderbilt University’s First Amendment Center Ombudsman David Hudson, is quoted. The story also ran in the San Francisco Chronicle.

The Tennessean: What a Trump tenure means for courts in Tennessee - November 15, 2016 - President-elect Donald Trump could dramatically change the makeup of the federal court system in Tennessee with nominations over the next four years, choices that legal scholars say should not be overshadowed by his nominee to the U.S. Supreme Court. Brian Fitzpatrick, professor of law, is quoted. The article mentions that Amul Thapar, a federal trial judge in Kentucky and adjunct professor of law at Vanderbilt, is on Trump’s list of 21 possible Supreme Court nominees.

WSMV Channel 4 - November 10, 2016 - interviewed Brian Fitzpatrick, professor of law, about the impact that the presidential election will have on the Supreme Court.

SCOTUS Blog: Rethinking the court’s property-rights jurisprudence in the Progressive Era - November 7, 2019 - During a lecture before the Supreme Court Historical Society on Wednesday, James Ely, professor of law, emeritus, posited that the Progressive-Era court largely accommodated social and political reforms, diminished protections previously afforded to property owners and opened the door for later New Deal jurisprudence.

Bloomberg BNA: Think tank wades into regulatory policy - November 4, 2016 - The Center for American Progress, a think tank with deep ties to both former President Bill Clinton and Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, has posted its first policy paper on the issue of regulatory overhaul. The policy paper, which was written by Ganesh Sitaraman, associate professor of law and senior fellow at CAP, mirrors the arguments that have been made by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) that industry and business have too much influence over the regulatory process.

KQED Public Radio (San Francisco): San Francisco and Berkeley could lower the voting age - November 4, 2016 - There are only two places in the country where 16- and 17-year-olds can vote in local elections, and they are both small cities in Maryland––Hyattsville and Takoma Park. Come Nov. 8, San Francisco and Berkeley could join that list if Proposition F and Measure Y1 receive enough votes. Jenny Diamond Cheng, lecturer in law, is quoted.

The Cannabist: Across America, efforts to decriminalize marijuana are pitting cities vs. states - November 4, 2016 - A lot of attention is being focused on the states preparing to vote on marijuana legalization in the Nov. 8 elections. But there’s another, less high-profile political movement underway, as more cities act in defiance of their home state governments and work to decriminalize cannabis possession and lessen penalties. Robert Mikos, professor of law, is quoted.

Reuters: In biggest cases, class action lawyers are low-balling fee requests—and that’s a good thing - November 3, 2016 - U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier of New Orleans ruled last week that the plaintiffs’ lawyers who led the Deepwater Horizon oil spill litigation against BP are entitled to about $555 million in fees and about $45 million in costs for their work on what the judge calls the biggest class action settlement in U.S. history. The $555 million common benefit award, which presumably will be shared by the 93 lawyers who signed the fee application last July, is an awful lot of money, even divided 93 ways. But in relative terms, not so much. Brian Fitzpatrick, professor of law, is quoted.

CSPAN-2 (national) featured Robert Mikos, professor of law, on a panel from the 10th Circuit Court Bench and Bar Conference in Colorado Springs, Colorado, discussing the impact of legalized marijuana.

Business Insider: One convicted murderer is challenging the definition of free speech from behind bars - November 1, 2016 - Though he is a prisoner, Arthur Longworth asserts his right to free speech under the First Amendment. Serving life without parole for a murder he committed in 1985, Longworth has continued to publish an array of stories and essays, including two articles for The Marshall Project, from the confines of his cell at the Monroe Correctional Complex in Washington state. First Amendment expert David Hudson, adjunct professor of law, is quoted.

Environment & Energy News: Supreme Court: Pivotal battle looms in long-running Southeast water war - November 1, 2016 - The biggest battle in the decades-long water war between Florida and Georgia starts today in, of all places, a New England courtroom. A bankruptcy court in Portland, Maine, is hosting the trial in the hot-button Supreme Court case addressing water flow and withdrawals in the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint river basin. The article mentions an amicus brief filed by J.B. Ruhl, David Daniels Allen Distinguished Professor of Law, asking the court to bear in mind ecosystem services that the rivers provide if and when the waters are divvied up.

October 2016

EnergyWire: 2017 could be the year to revamp electricity standards - October 26, 2016 - Congress could decide next year to tackle significant revisions to the law governing how the nation’s electricity sector is regulated, starting a multiyear process fraught with political risk. James Rossi, professor of law and director of the Law and Government program, is quoted. Subscription is required to access the article.

The Memphis Daily News: Electoral College scenarios emerge early in 2016 - October 6, 2016 - More than a month after all of the votes are counted in the Nov. 8 presidential general election, the real decision on who will be the next president will be made on Dec. 19, when the Electoral College meets in state capitals across the nation. Robert Cooper, adjunct professor of law, and John Ryder, adjunct professor of law, are quoted.

The Cipher Brief: How the terrorist watchlist works - October 3, 2016 - In the wake of recent domestic terrorist incidents, the spotlight has once again fallen on the terrorist watchlist. What is it, how does the system actually work — and could the watchlist have been a means to prevent the attacks? Arjun Singh Sethi, adjunct professor of law, is quoted.

The Atlantic: The tiny state whose laws affect workers everywhere - October 3, 2016 - Delaware is the center of the business universe. More than half of the publicly traded companies on U.S. stock exchanges are incorporated in Delaware. Two-thirds of Fortune 500 companies—including Coca-Cola, Apple and American Airlines—are incorporated there. The reason that corporations want to incorporate in Delaware is so that their disputes will be heard by one of the five judges of the state’s Court of Chancery—with no jury—and be decided under Delaware law. Sam Glasscock, adjunct professor of law and a Court of Chancery judge, is quoted.

September 2016

Money: Why Trump’s fat shaming affects all working women, not just beauty pageant contestants - September 29, 2016 - Job-related weight discrimination is usually less blatant than Donald Trump’s comments toward former Miss Universe Alicia Machado, but the implications are just as dangerous. As a growing body of research indicates, fat phobia can severely impact a woman’s career. The article quotes Jennifer Shinall, assistant professor of law, who found in her research that overweight women typically earn less than average-size women, and less than all men, regardless of weight. The article was reprinted inFortune.

Star Tribune (Minneapolis): Minneapolis Fed: Reining in big banks could spur shadow lending - September 27, 2016 - The Minneapolis Fed’s latest dive into the problem of “too big to fail” banks on Monday looked at an obstacle: Fixing them could expand the shadow banking system. If big banks are broken up, policymakers and economists fear that too much lending will wind up with unregulated financial institutions and create a new risk for the economy. Morgan Ricks, associate professor of law, is quoted.

Morgan Ricks, associate professor of law, was interviewed for the Macro Musings podcast about his new book, The Money Problem: Rethinking Financial Regulation. September 27, 2016

Carol Swain, professor of political science and law, provided live commentary for BBC Four (U.K.) during the U.S. presidential debate last night. September 27, 2016

ABA Journal: BigLaw could retain more women by hiring from lower-ranked schools, research suggests - September 21, 2016 - Female graduates of law schools ranked in the top 10 are more likely to make an early exit from BigLaw than female grads of lower-tier schools, according to a new study. The article mentions similar research by Joni Hersch, professor of law and economics, who determined that women who graduated from elite colleges also drop out of the workforce at higher rates.

India Climate Dialogue: Indian solar makers unfazed by adverse WTO verdict - September 21, 2016 - Domestic solar equipment manufacturers are not worried about the World Trade Organization’s ruling against India’s buy-local policy because petitioner United States has become an insignificant player in the local market. As a consequence of the WTO ruling, India is increasing its domestic sourcing under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission by incentivizing local manufacturers through subsidies and upping procurement of solar panels by government agencies, instead of making domestic sourcing mandatory as it had planned to do earlier. Timothy Meyer, professor of law, is quoted.

Glamour: These findings on workplace weight discrimination will shock you - September 20, 2016 - It’s no secret that people, especially women, get judged unfairly due to negative weight-based stereotypes. The article mentions a study by Jennifer Shinall, assistant professor of law, who found that overweight and obese women—but not men—made less money than those in the weight range considered healthy.

Gainesville Times (Florida): Conservation groups to weigh in on Georgia–Florida water wars case - September 19, 2016 - Several big-name conservation organizations are seeking to give input to the U.S. Supreme Court battle between Florida and Georgia over water use in a basin the two states share. David Daniels Allen Distinguished Professor of Law J.B. Ruhl, who recently filed a motion seeking to file a brief supporting Florida, is quoted.

Associated Press: Many young athletes joining Colin Kaepernick’s national anthem protest - September 14, 2016 - Colin Kaepernick’s protest against social injustice is being heard loud and clear by young athletes across the country and a host of high school football players have emulated the San Francisco quarterback in recent weeks by kneeling during the national anthem before their own games. In football-crazy states such as New Jersey, Alabama and Massachusetts, some players have faced suspension and others have reported harassment or even threats over their stance. David Hudson, adjunct professor of law and author of Let the Students Speak: A History of the Fight for Freedom of Expression in American Schools, is quoted.

The Filter with Nomiki Konst (podcast) on SiriusXM interviewed Arjun Sethi, adjunct professor of law, about counterterrorism and Islamophobia following the recent bombings in the New York City area.

The Tennessean: Nashville on the Record: David Hudson - September 11, 2016 - "we have to protect speech we don't like," says Adjunct Professor of Law David Hudson when asked about the biggest threats to the First Amendment today. Hudson was profiled in the paper for the regular series.

CCTV America interviewed Arjun Sethi, adjunct professor of law, about private prisons and mass incarceration in the U.S.

WYNC: The power and prestige of being a New York judge - September 7, 2016 - New Yorkers have the opportunity to elect judges in September’s primary election, several races for the civil courts will appear on the ballot. But most voters feel stumped when they go to the ballot box. About 40 percent of Supreme Court justices in the city are women, according to research by Tracey George, Charles B. Cox III and Lucy D. Cox Family Professor of Law and Liberty, and about 30 percent are people of color. But almost three quarters of New Yorkers are not white, and half are women. George is quoted in the story.

August 2016

The New York Times: Muslims seek new burial ground, and a small town balks - August 29, 2016 - As the number of American Muslims increases and immigrant Muslims age, groups have sought to construct their own cemeteries, which are often less expensive than other facilities and are familiar with Muslim traditions, including quick burials, bodies facing Mecca and, when allowed locally, no coffins. But from Minnesota to Texas—and even last week in Georgia—such proposals have been met with swells of opposition, similar to disputes over new mosques or schools, raising the specter of exclusion even for the dead. Leor Halevi, associate professor of history and of law, is quoted.

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Editorial | School Boards: All citizen voices deserve to be heard - August 29, 2016 - A survey of school district policies across southeastern Wisconsin, obtained by the Journal Sentinel through open records requests, found an array of provisions that effectively limit who can speak and when, and what they can and cannot say. First Amendment expert David Hudson, adjunct professor of law, is quoted.

The Huffington Post: Opinion: How short-term activists create long-term value - August 25, 2016 - Alex Edmans, professor of finance at London Business School, writes that to truly understand the effects of activist hedge funds, it’s necessary to look at all the evidence—to study hundreds of cases, in different industries, across different time periods. The article mentions research by Randall Thomas, John S. Beasley II Professor of Law and Business, who found that activism leads to firm value increasing by 7 percent, with no long-term reversal.

Knoxville News Sentinel (Tennessee): Editorial: Police should show restraint on social media - August 25, 2016 - Law enforcement officers have come under greater scrutiny of late, but those who are tempted to vent their frustrations on social media should consider the consequences, according to this editorial. First Amendment expert David Hudson, adjunct professor of law, is quoted.

USA Today: Opinion: Hate-crime laws aren’t strong enough - August 23, 2016 - America needs strong hate crime laws because hate crimes are intended to intimidate and terrorize entire communities. Because courts regularly require prosecutors to show that hate was the sole factor motivating the crime, not just a substantial motivating factor, those who commit crimes with mixed motives often are not charged with a hate crime. Both Congress and individual states can remedy this failure by passing legislation or clarifying in guidelines that bias need only be a substantial motivating factor in proving a hate crime, not the sole factor, writes Arjun Singh Sethi, adjunct professor of law.

The Wall Street Journal: Appeals court: Maker of web spy tool can be sued for alleged wiretap violations - August 17, 2016 - A federal appeals court in Ohio has revived a lawsuit against a company accused of helping a husband spy on his wife and her online friend in violation of state and federal wiretap laws. The case is one of several in recent years to highlight the increasing presence of easy-to-use electronic spy tools in domestic life and divorce proceedings, where evidence of infidelity can carry a tremendous advantage. Mark Pickrell, adjunct professor of law and interim head of Vanderbilt Law School’s Appellate Litigation Clinic, which represents the plaintiff in the case, is quoted. The case was argued by Clayton Wiggins '16 and worked on by he and his classmates Calvin Cohen, Larry Crane-Moscowitz and Alex Vey.

The Tennessean: Judge claims media need permission to enter court - August 11, 2016 - A Nashville judge on Wednesday suggested that a reporter who had been observing her courtroom must get written permission before entering. The request goes against protections in state and federal law that make courts open to the public, and thus also the media. The judge has since clarified her position to fall in line with Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 30 on media guidelines. First Amendment expert David Hudson, adjunct professor of law, is quoted.

NPR: ‘Guilty but mentally ill’ doesn’t protect against harsh sentences - August 3, 2016 - In light of John Hinckley Jr.’s release from a mental institution 35 years after attempting to assassinate President Ronald Reagan, NPR’s “Shots” is exploring the use of the not guilty by reason of insanity plea, talking with legal and medical professionals about how the plea works, and how it doesn’t work. This second in the four-part series looks at how juries respond to insanity defenses. Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law and professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, is quoted.

NPR: The Takeaway (national) - August 3, 2016 -Kareem Crayton, visiting professor of law,was interviewed about how voter ID challenges in different states could shape the 2016 presidential election.

The Tennessean: Compensation, caseload key complaints from defense lawyers - August 2, 2016 - On Friday defense lawyers from around Tennessee spoke to members of the Tennessee Supreme Court-appointed Indigent Representation Task Force, which is on a listening tour around the state to hear ideas on how to improve the current system of providing attorneys for the poor. Rich McGee, experienced criminal defense lawyer and adjunct professor of law at Vanderbilt, is quoted.

Urban Milwaukee: 95 percent of Wisconsin state judges are white - August 2, 2016 - Wisconsin’s state-level judiciary is the sixth whitest in the country, according to a new study called The Gavel Gap, released by the American Constitution Society for Law and Policy. And among states with at least 100 judges, Wisconsin is dead last in racial diversity among state judges. Study co-author Tracey George, Charles B. Cox III and Lucy D. Cox Family Professor of Law and Liberty, is quoted. George also is quoted in a related article in Toledo Legal News about judicial diversity in Ohio.

Lilith Magazine: Mind the gap if you’re a woman returning to work - July 22, 2016 - There’s been a steadfast, if unwritten, rule that if a woman wants equal footing professionally, any information related to home life stays at home. Now, a Vanderbilt study has found data that contradicts conventional wisdom, which includes a female applicant strongly raises her chances of getting hired if she gives personal information clarifying her resume gaps. Co-authors Joni Hersch, professor of law and economics, and Jennifer Shinall, assistant professor of law, are quoted.

Legaltech News: A call to legal tech: AI is here - July 20, 2016 - Larry Bridgesmith, adjunct professor of law, is interviewed about deep machine learning—an ability for a machine to learn without being programmed to learn specific pieces of information—and its implications for the legal profession.

Markets Media: Is it time to revamp market policing? - July 19, 2016- It may be time for self-regulatory organizations to lose their limited liability so that they can improve their policing of the market, according to new research from Yesha Yadav, associate professor of law. When policymakers decided to stress competition as a governing objective of the Regulation NMS-based market, she says they lost sight of the exchanges’ responsibility to police the market. Yadav is quoted.

The Tennessean: Opinion: How is new TN Medicaid expansion plan different? - July 18, 2016- Now that Tennessee’s state legislature has released another proposal for Medicaid expansion in the state, health insurance consumers may be wondering two things: How is this plan different from Insure Tennessee, and will any of these proposals actually get implemented? The article mentions that the U.S. Supreme Court decided in 2012—using an argument presented by James Blumstein, University Professor of Constitutional Law and Health Law and Policy—that states could opt in or out of Medicaid expansion without jeopardizing their existing funding.

Arizona Daily Star (Tucson):U.S. rule makes it hard for wildlife service to crack down on Rosemont - July 18, 2016 - A little-known federal rule played a key role in killing several tough mitigation measures that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service originally wanted to impose on the proposed Rosemont Mine. Known as the “minor change” rule, it allows the wildlife service to require only minor changes in a proposed project unless the project is expected to jeopardize the existence of an endangered or threatened species. J.B. Ruhl, David Daniels Allen Distinguished Professor of Law, is quoted.

South Bend Tribune (Indiana): South Bend man’s case to test law on Facebook threats - July 15, 2016 - In an age of increasingly harsh language on social media, when does a Facebook rant turn into a crime? Even the U.S. Supreme Court has struggled to provide an answer, and now a South Bend man’s case will become the latest to test that question after he was charged with a federal crime for allegedly threatening to incite violence at a Black Lives Matter rally over the weekend. First Amendment expert David Hudson, adjunct professor of law, is quoted.

WalletHub: 2016's Most and Least Energy-Expensive States - July 12, 2016 - In the U.S., energy costs eat between 5 and 22 percent of families’ total after-tax income, with the poorest Americans, or 25 million households, paying the highest of that range. And lower energy prices don’t necessarily equate to savings. Where we live and how much energy we use make up a larger part of the math. Energy expert, Professor Jim Rossi, is quoted.

Interchange on WFHB (Bloomington, Indiana) interviewed Colin Dayan, Robert Penn Warren Professor of the Humanities and professor of law, about her books With Dogs at the Edge of Life, The Law is a White Dog, her upcoming memoir and on constructing criminality and negating persons.

Suzanna Sherry, Herman O. Loewenstein Professor of Law, was a featured guest on Legal Talk Network’s Lawyer 2 Lawyer, providing an end-of-term wrap-up of the U.S. Supreme Court.

CNN: Who’s responsible when an autonomous car crashes? - July 8, 2016 - Electric car maker Tesla may have to deal with a lawsuit over its autopilot system after a driver got in an accident using the self-driving technology on a Florida road in May. W. Kip Viscusi, University Distinguished Professor of Law, Economics and Management and co-director of the Ph.D. Program in Law and Economics, is quoted.

ABA Journal: 50 years later, Freedom of Information Act still chipping away at government’s secretive culture - July 1, 2016 - On Independence Day 50 years ago, President Lyndon Baines Johnson reluctantly signed into law the Freedom of Information Act, which he thought was terrible legislation and considered vetoing it after it was passed by Congress. Consternation over FOIA was not confined to the Oval Office. More than a dozen federal agencies actively opposed the bill and testified against it at congressional hearings. But the press and some committed members of Congress actively pushed it to fruition, writes First Amendment expert David Hudson, adjunct professor of law.

June 2016

Nature: Science academies blast U.S. government’s planned research-ethics reforms - June 30, 2016 - The U.S. government’s proposed overhaul of regulations that govern research with human subjects is flawed and should be withdrawn, an independent advisory panel said on Wednesday. The regulations, which are known collectively as the Common Rule, address ethical issues such as informed consent and storage of study participants’ biological specimens. Ellen Wright Clayton, Craig-Weaver Professor of Pediatrics, professor of law and health policy, is quoted.

Wisconsin NPR Radio interviewed Tracey George, professor of law and political science, on her co-authored research that shows state judges are not representative of the people they serve. The interview was conducted at VUStar, Vanderbilt’s broadcast facility.

La Prensa Latina: State judges in the U.S. do not reflect minorities according to study - June 30, 2016 - The representation of minorities among U.S. state judges lags as white men are the vast majority of these magistrates, according to a release by the American Constitutional Society. The group noted that state courts would “fail” minorities by not reflecting their communities, and that 41 of the 51 judicial powers in the country have a gap in the representation of their populations that exceeds 40 percent. Tracey George, Charles B. Cox III and Lucy D. Cox Professor of Law and Liberty, is quoted. The story was also carried in El Tiempo Hispano.

Brian Fitzpatrick, professor of law, was a guest on NPR’s On Point discussing the latest Supreme Court rulings. June 28, 2016

Nashville Public Radioreported the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to strike down two abortion restrictions in Texas that will likely have major ramifications for similar regulations in Tennessee. Suzanna Sherry, Herman O. Loewenstein Professor of Law, was interviewed

CNN interviewed Carol Swain, professor of political science and law, about a Pittsburgh TV anchor who filed a reverse discrimination lawsuit after being fired. June 27, 2016

Bloomberg BNA: Solutions afoot for curbing class action gadflies - June 24, 2016 - The most significant proposal to come out of the federal rules committee’s look at class action lawsuits seeks to curb the power objectors hold over the class settlement process. Plaintiffs’ and defense attorneys say these objectors can derail deals the parties have reached until the parties pay the objectors “greenmail” to go away. But a frequent objector says the extent of the problem is overblown. The real focus should be preventing frivolous class actions from getting traction in the first place, he says. Brian T. Fitzpatrick, professor of law, is quoted.

American Bar Association Journal: Study finds a ‘gavel gap’ between diversity of judges and that of the populations they serve - June 24, 2016 - A study by the American Constitution Society examines demographic diversity in every state’s courts — and finds that most states are falling short. As of December 2014, the researchers concluded, more than half of sitting state court judges nationally were white males. Racial and ethnic minorities are 40 percent of the population as a whole, the article says, but 20 percent of state court judges. Women are 51 percent of the population and have been about half of law students for the past 20 years, the report says. But they’re just 30 percent of state court judges nationwide. Tracey George, coauthor of the study and Charles B. Cox III and Lucy D. Cox Family Professor of Law and Liberty, is quoted. A related story was aired on WSMV, Channel 4 Nashville.

Minneapolis Star Tribune: Texas U. admissions can consider race, Supreme Court rules - June 24, 2016 - In a narrow victory for affirmative action, the Supreme Court on Thursday upheld a University of Texas program that takes account of race in deciding whom to admit, an important national decision that was cemented by the death of Justice Antonin Scalia. The justices’ 4-3 decision in favor of the Texas program ends an 8-year-old lawsuit that included a previous trip to the Supreme Court, filed by a white Texan who was denied admission to the university. Suzanna Sherry, Herman O. Loewenstein Professor of Law, is quoted.

Tampa Bay Times: Florida gets failing grade for gender and ethnic diversity among its judges - June 23, 2016 - Florida is one of 26 states to receive a failing grade for its gender and racial diversity, according to the American Constitution Society for Law and Policy, a progressive legal organization. Florida ranked 29 out of 51 state court jurisdictions in the country because its judiciaries are 45 percent less diverse than the state population. The findings are referenced from “The Gavel Gap,” a new report by Tracey George, Charles B. Cox III and Lucy D. Cox Family Professor of Law and Liberty, and Albert Yoon, University of Toronto. Related stories ran in Black Legal Issues, Chippewa Herald and The Indiana Lawyer.

BuzzFeed: State courts dramatically lacking in diversity, groundbreaking report details - June 22, 2016 - In 16 states, people of color account for fewer than one in 10 state court judges, a groundbreaking report details. Despite women being more than 50 percent of the population, the report reveals that they represent only about 30 percent of the judges — a number that plays out across regions of the country. “The Gavel Gap,” a new report by Tracey George, Charles B. Cox III and Lucy D. Cox Family Professor of Law and Liberty, and Albert Yoon, University of Toronto, was released by the American Constitution Society today. The coauthors are quoted from the report.

Forbes: Opinion: Payday loans can be a lifeline for the poor—meddling bureaucrats would yank it away - June 17, 2016 - A great number of Americans live paycheck to paycheck, and occasionally they find themselves in desperate need of short-term credit to avoid a financial disaster. One of their options is to get a short-term advance from a “payday lender,” but newly proposed federal regulations aimed at that industry may end up hurting the borrowers. Paige Marta Skiba, professor of law, is quoted.

CNBC: So you just got a pile of cash. Here’s your next move - June 13, 2016 - Nearly nine in 10 consumers say if they were to suddenly earn or receive “millions,” they would save or invest at least a portion of that money, according to a forthcoming financial survey. Whether they stick to those vows is another matter. A 2010 study co-authored by Paige Marta Skiba, associate professor of law, that studied how lottery windfalls affected the bankruptcy rate in financially distressed winners, is referenced.

Boston Globe: Payday loans are a poor option. No payday loans would be worse - June 13, 2016 - Payday loans are often derided as “predatory.” Most Americans would never think of turning to a storefront lender in a scruffy neighborhood to borrow a few hundred dollars for two weeks at what amounts to an annualized interest rate of 400 percent or more. So, it isn’t hard to fathom why critics rail against them, and why the Obama administration wants to shut the industry down. The article referenced an opinion piece by Paige Marta Skiba, professor of law, originally published by The Conversation, which states that oversight of payday loans is necessary, but enacting rules that will decimate the payday loan industry will not solve any problems. The article was reposted by Townhall.

Law 360: Ninth Circuit throws down the gauntlet on music sampling - June 7, 2016 - When the Ninth Circuit ruled Thursday that Madonna wasn’t liable for copyright infringement for incorporating a 0.23-second “horn blast” from a disco song into her 1990 hit “Vogue,” it challenged a 2005 ruling from the Sixth Circuit that had effectively outlawed any unauthorized sampling whatsoever. Joseph Fishman, assistant professor of law, is quoted.

Huffington Post: Opinion: Ali is dead, fear is alive and free speech is being dealt a knock-out punch - June 7, 2016 - Author and attorney John Whitehead writes that as a nation, we have a tendency to sentimentalize cultural icons, like Muhammad Ali, in death in a way that renders them nonthreatening, antiseptic and easily digested by a society with an acute intolerance for anything controversial, politically incorrect or marred by imperfection. Whitehead includes a quote from First Amendment expert David Hudson, adjunct professor of law.

Nashville Scene: The winds surrounding the TVA, they are a-changin’. Is the TVA losing its relevancy? - June 2, 2016 - Nearly all of Tennessee is in TVA country, meaning that a federal entity put in place during the Great Depression to bring cheap energy and jobs to poor rural areas still dictates which energy sources are tapped for our electricity. But as more customers demand alternate forms of energy, the TVA now finds itself caught in the winds of change. Jim Rossi, professor of law, is quoted.

The News Journal (Delaware): Proposed bill aims to balance shareholder rights; judicial resources - May 31, 2016 - A proposed change to Delaware’s corporate statutes is generating controversy with some claiming the bill would save judicial resources at the expense of plaintiffs’ rights. House Bill 371 would restrict the number of corporate shareholders who can petition the court for a stock appraisal to only those who own $1 million or more of a company’s stock or 1 percent of the outstanding shares, depending on which is less. The article mentions research by Randall S. Thomas, John S. Beasley II Professor of Law and Business.

Bloomberg: Clinton lurks in shadows when sparring with Sanders on banks - May 26, 2016 - The shadow-banking industry is a campaign issue only a wonk could love, ideal for Hillary Clinton’s preference for bulleted policy briefs. But it’s more than just a way to avoid talking about banks. Clinton and Bernie Sanders stand on two sides of an argument among regulators and academics over what caused the last financial crisis and how to avoid the next one. Sanders is focused on how financial institutions are structured. Clinton is looking at how they are funded. Associate Professor of Law Morgan Ricks, who was a senior policy adviser at the Treasury Department in 2009 and 2010, is quoted.

ProPublica: Machine bias: There’s software used across the country to predict future criminals. And it’s biased against blacks - May 20, 2016 - Risk assessments created by computer programs are increasingly common in courtrooms across the nation. They are used to inform decisions about who can be set free at every stage of the criminal justice system, from assigning bond amounts to even more fundamental decisions about defendants’ freedom. ProPublica obtained the risk scores assigned to more than 7,000 people arrested in Broward County, Florida, in 2013 and 2014, and found the scores proved remarkably unreliable in forecasting violent crime. They also reflect significant racial disparities. Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law, is quoted.

Knoxville News Sentinel (Tennessee): Tenn. task force looks at how best to provide legal representation to the state’s poor - May 20, 2016 - The chairman of a state task force created in the wake of a failed effort to convince legislators to shell out more money for attorneys protecting the legal rights of the poor has already labeled as “dead on arrival” any future bid for funding. Susan Kay, clinical professor of law and associate dean for clinical affairs, is mentioned as one of the members of the task force.

The New York Times: A child care gap in the résumé: Whether to explain or not - May 19, 2016 - For women hoping to return to the workplace after caring for their children, the advice is often “don’t ask, don’t tell.” Many women who described themselves as stay-at-home mothers can attest to receiving denigrating nods and hasty rebuffs when pressed about their resume gaps. But according to a new study by Vanderbilt researchers Joni Hersch, professor of law and economics, and Jennifer Shinall, assistant professor of law, women may be better off explaining their decision to stay home to a potential employer upfront. A related story was also posted by Futurity.

STAT: Scientists fight Obama plan to require patient consent to use blood, biopsies in research - May 16, 2016 - Scientists are warning that a new proposal by the Obama administration could stifle medical research and undermine major initiatives being pursued by the White House. The controversial provision would require researchers to obtain consent from patients to use almost all biospecimens—blood samples, tumor biopsies and organ tissue—even when those samples do not include information that could be used to identify the patients. Ellen Wright Clayton, Craig-Weaver Professor of Pediatrics and professor of law, is quoted.

Shape: Opinion: Why America hates fat women, the feminist take - May 16, 2016 - Vanessa Friedman writes that “as a feminist who realizes that my issues as a privileged white woman are merely the tip of the problematic iceberg, and as an optimistic human who hopes we can one day treat each other and ourselves with kindness, I am deeply invested in talking about American society’s problem with fat women.” The article mentions a Vanderbilt study by Professor Jennifer Shinall that found overweight women earn less money than thinner women and all men.

Associated Press: Arrest of Tennessee children exposes flawed juvenile justice - May 13, 2016 - A Tennessee police officer tried to prevent the arrests that would embroil his department in a national furor over policing in schools, but his colleagues and supervisors refused to change course. They insisted on arresting children as young as 9 years old at their elementary school and took them away—two in handcuffs—to a juvenile detention center as the school day came to an end. Terry Maroney, professor of law and co-director of the George Barrett Social Justice Program at Vanderbilt, is quoted.

The Tennessean: How can public defenders refuse cases? - May 12, 2016 - Assistant public defenders in Williamson County have temporarily stopped taking on new cases, but isn’t it their job to represent everyone who cannot afford a lawyer? Though public defenders offices are publicly funded law firms tasked with taking on people charged with crimes who cannot pay for lawyers themselves, experts say those offices are not obligated to take on every case. Terry Maroney, professor of law and co-director of the George Barrett Social Justice Program at Vanderbilt, is quoted.

Science Daily: Panic-proofing, not preventing bubbles, should be focus of U. S. financial policy - May 11, 2016 - Complicated new regulations added to complicated old regulations won’t protect the United States’ financial system from frightening crashes like that experienced in 2008, says a Vanderbilt professor who helped the Obama administration pull the financial sector out of that morass. Morgan Ricks, associate professor of law and author of The Money Problem: Rethinking Financial Regulation (The University of Chicago Press), is quoted.

Associated Press: Report raises questions about Murfreesboro arrests at school - May 6, 2016 - A new report raises more questions about why Murfreesboro, Tennessee, police arrested children between the ages of 9 and 12, with some of them handcuffed, at their elementary school last month. Terry Maroney, professor of law and of medicine, health and society, is quoted.

The Nashville Ledger (Tennessee): Why is Tennessee’s bankruptcy rate so high? - May 5, 2016 - Tennessee led the nation in bankruptcy filings last year with 36,052 filings – more than twice the national average. Several factors contribute to the state’s high filing rate. Larry Ahern, adjunct professor of law, is quoted. Ahern is quoted in a related story posted by The Nashville Ledger: “More money means bigger bankruptcy problems.”

International Criminal Justice Today: Opinion: The ICC is indispensable to a Syria solution - May 4, 2016 - Michael Newton, professor of the practice of law, and his fellow members of the American Bar Association’s International Criminal Court (ICC) Project Board of Advisors write that the ICC is a permanent and central part of the international landscape and should be a part of any effort to combat impunity in Syria.

USA Today: Juror’s objection on race leads to new trial - April 27, 2016 - At the start of a trial earlier this month, a juror stood up to tell the judge he did not think that two black men should face a jury without black members. The juror’s words to Judge Cheryl Blackburn of Davidson County Criminal Court earlier this month — confirmed by lawyers and others present in the courtroom — led to the delay of a trial and brought Nashville into a growing national discussion about the diversity of juries. Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law, is quoted. The story also ran in The Tennessean on April 26.

The Tennessean: Nashville juror’s objection on race leads to new trial - April 26, 2016 - When a juror stood up and told Criminal Court Judge Cheryl Blackburn earlier this month that he did not think it was right for two black men to face a jury with no black members on it, it led to the delay of the trial and brought Nashville into a growing national discussion about the diversity of juries. Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law, is quoted.

The Atlantic: What is driving America’s financial woes? - April 22, 2016 - The publication’s May issue addresses why so many Americans are struggling to remain financially solvent. Paige Marta Skiba, professor of law, is featured as one of the experts and discusses how alternative financial services, such as payday loans, installment loans and auto-title loans, have made an impact.

The Tennessean: When should kids be accountable by law? - April 20, 2016 - The exact legal justification for the arrest of Murfreesboro elementary school students remains hard to understand, especially without specifics in the case, which have not been released by police, experts say. On Friday, Murfreesboro police handcuffed and arrested as many as 10 children ranging in age from 6 to 11 years old on allegations they failed to stop a fight that happened off school grounds. Terry Maroney, professor of law and of medicine, health and society, is quoted. Maroney also is quoted in a related article in the Daily News Journal (Murfreesboro).

The Blaze: Should prisoners be permitted to have Facebook accounts? - April 18, 2016 - Texas policymakers are currently debating whether prisoners should be allowed to have Facebook pages following a new rule the Lone Star State implemented, which further limits inmates’ access to social media. David Hudson, adjunct professor of law, is quoted.

Nashville Business Journal: Nashville attorneys, meet your next (robotic) co-worker - April 12, 2016 - Andrew Arruda, CEO and co-founder of Ross Intelligence, a Canadian company which has partnered with IBM Watson (of Jeopardy fame) to create an artificially intelligent attorney, is among a roster of speakers appearing at a two-day conference that begins Wednesday at Vanderbilt Law School. The event—titled “Watson, Esq.: Will Your Next Lawyer Be a Machine?”—will focus on the emergence of technology in the legal industry.

Bustle: 5 distressing graphs about equal pay that you absolutely have to see - April 12, 2016 - When there’s a specific day of the year to celebrate when a woman will finally have made the same amount of money a man earned in the year before, you know things aren’t quite right in the world. Equal Pay Day is meant to highlight the statistic that a woman makes 78 cents to a man’s dollar in the United States. Research by Jennifer Shinall, assistant professor of law, is mentioned.

Environment & Energy News: DOE agrees to involvement in Clean Line transmission project - March 28, 2016 - The Department of Energy on Friday said it will participate in a first-of-its-kind partnership with a Houston company to develop a $2.5 billion wind energy superhighway from the Oklahoma Panhandle to the southeastern United States. Jim Rossi, professor of law, is quoted.The Washington Post: Hulk Hogan’s $140.1 million KO in courtroom could have ‘chilling effect’ on media - March 22, 2016 - Former pro wrestler Hulk Hogan’s $115 million jury award as a result of his invasion-of-privacy lawsuit against Gawker Media could have deeper implications for the debate between the public’s right to know (and the media’s right to report) and an individual’s right to privacy. David Hudson, adjunct professor of law, is quoted.

San Francisco Chronicle: New film recounts Thurgood Marshall’s role in sensational Greenwich case - March 19, 2016 - The story of a sensational criminal case that rocked Greenwich and southern Connecticut is now being filmed for the big screen. The original drama played out in 1941, a rape trial that pitted a Greenwich socialite and a black chauffeur against each other on the witness stand in a Bridgeport courtroom. Representing the driver was a crusading young lawyer named Thurgood Marshall, who later became a Supreme Court justice and a monumental figure in the civil rights era. Daniel Sharfstein, professor of law and history, is quoted.

The Tennessean: ‘Scalia-isms’ appear in Nashville records case - March 18, 2016 - U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia’s standout style of writing is making the rounds, and it’s come to Nashville. The justice’s colorful prose—including his infamous phrase “jiggery-pokery”—is quoted in a Tennessee case that pitted public records law versus rules that dictate how court evidence should be handled before trials. Brian Fitzpatrick, professor of law, who is a former clerk to Justice Scalia, is quoted.

The Tennessean: Opinion: Erin Andrews trial made public access an issue - March 13, 2016 - Inside the Nashville courtroom where Erin Andrews fought for a monetary judgment big enough to send a message about hotel safety, another legal dispute flared. It was about keeping the public outside. More specifically, keeping the media out of Judge Hamilton Gayden’s courtroom. Over the course of the two-week trial, reporters were shut out of jury selection when they should not have been. David Hudson, adjunct professor of law, is quoted.

BioScience: Will a Supreme Court challenge set back efforts to diversify STEM in academia? - March 10, 2016 - The legality of racial preference in university admissions is in limbo after the Supreme Court decided to rehear Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin, a case that challenged the university’s use of race in determining acceptance. In light of the growing efforts by universities to increase racial and ethnic diversity in STEM fields, will the case set back the progress that has been made? Brian Fitzpatrick, professor of law, is quoted.

The Tennessee Tribune (Nashville): Who will replace Supreme Court Judge Scalia? - March 10, 2016 - Nashville’s Chapter of the American Constitution Society and the Napier-Looby Bar Association recently held a panel discussion about the process of picking a replacement for Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. Panelists Brian Fitzpatrick, professor of law, and Ganesh Sitaraman, assistant professor of law, are quoted.

Forbes: The brain gets its day in court - March 1, 2016 - A recent study of nearly 1,600 judicial opinions documenting the expanding use of brain science in the criminal-justice system, found that the number of judicial opinions that mention neuroscientific evidence more than doubled between 2005 and 2012. Owen Jones, New York Alumni Chancellor’s Professor of Law and professor of biological sciences, is quoted.

NPR’s Here & Now: How newcomers are changing Tennessee - March 1, 2016 - As part of its Super Tuesday coverage, host Jeremy Hobson interviewed Carol Swain, professor of political science and law, about the changing political landscape in the state.

February 2016

New Yorker: Courting business - February 29, 2016 - As a member of the Supreme Court’s conservative majority, Justice Antonin Scalia played a key role in moving American law in a more corporate-friendly direction. Now that majority is gone, and a huge amount rides on what happens next. Professor of Law Brian T. Fitzpatrick, who once clerked for Scalia, is quoted.

Forbes: USA beats India in WTO; rematch possible - February 29, 2016 - In a case filed by the Obama administration, a World Trade Organization dispute settlement panel ruled that India’s requirement that companies that sell solar power to the government use only domestically made parts and components unfairly discriminated against American manufacturers. Timothy Meyer, professor of law, is quoted.

Carol Swain, professor of political science and law, was a featured guest on MSNBC’s live broadcast on the eve of Super Tuesday elections discussing the topics of early voting turnout and voters’ responses to notable endorsements of presidential candidates.

On Point with Tom Ashbrook (national) interviewed Mike Newton, professor of the practice of law, regarding President Obama’s plan to close the detention center at Guantanamo Bay. LISTEN

Florida Today (Brevard County): Florida Tech holds free speech celebration - February 24, 2016 - Florida Tech is celebrating the First Amendment with an annual series of events designed to highlight the importance of free speech. Part of the event featured an address by David Hudson, an adjunct professor of law who has written more than 30 books, including several on the First Amendment. Hudson is quoted.

Think Progress: Why Sony doesn’t want to let Kesha out of her contract with her alleged abuser - February 24, 2016 - On Friday, New York Supreme Court Justice Shirley Kornreich declined to grant Kesha Rose Sebert a preliminary injunction that would liberate her from her contract with Lukasz “Dr. Luke” Gottwald. Sebert has been trying to get out of her contract with Sony since 2014; she alleges she suffered years of rape and abuse, as well as unfair business proceedings, by Gottwald. Entertainment attorney Suzanne Kessler, adjunct professor of law, is quoted.

BBC News interviewed Carol Swain, professor of political science and law, about how presidential candidate Donald Trump’s campaign will be affected by his response to the pope’s criticism of his stance on immigration issues.

The Guardian (U.K.): Scalia’s death casts uncertainty on major court challenge to legal marijuana - February 17, 2016 - The sudden death of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia has thrown a wrench into one of the most significant legal challenges of marijuana legalization in the U.S. The death of the staunch conservative judge on Saturday could be a boost to advocates of legal pot in Colorado—which is facing a potential threat at the Supreme Court. Robert Mikos, professor of law, is quoted.

Environment & Energy News: Forecast for enviro cases: Murky with a chance of deadlocks - February 16, 2016 - With the Supreme Court having eight sitting justices divided evenly among ideological lines in the wake of Justice Antonin Scalia’s death, it won’t be easy to secure majority opinions. If the court splits 4-4, it upholds a lower court decision without setting a precedent. But while that might happen in hot-button cases this term dealing with issues like immigration and affirmative action, it’s less clear whether the court will divide evenly along ideological lines in some pending environmental cases. Jim Rossi, professor of law, is quoted.

Associated Press: Scalia’s death means loss of key vote in divided cases - February 15, 2016 - Justice Antonin Scalia’s death deprives conservatives of a key vote that could change the outcome in some major Supreme Court cases, including one in which labor unions appeared headed for a big defeat. Brian T. Fitzpatrick, professor of law and former law clerk for Justice Scalia, is quoted in the article and in a related one in Bloomberg. Fitzpatrick also is quoted extensively in NPR, MSNBC, Business Insider and The Tennessean about what it was like working with Scalia. Also, Suzanna Sherry, Herman O. Loewenstein Professor of Law, is quoted in a Yahoo! News article about what Scalia’s death means for pending Supreme Court decisions.

Carol Swain, professor of political science and law, was interviewed on CNN’s Smerconish show about parents in Virginia being outraged after students were shown a racially divisive cartoon, also referred to as “white guilt,” for Black History Month.

Bloomberg BNA: Injecting rationalism into the artificial intelligence discussion - February 12, 2016 - Vanderbilt University Law School is hosting a conference billed as the first legal conference on the topic of artificial intelligence titled, “Watson, Esq.: Will Your Next Lawyer Be a Machine.” The event is geared toward explaining how AI is affecting legal practitioners, and is set for April 13 – 14. Larry Bridgesmith, adjunct professor of law, is quoted.

Bloomberg BNA: 12th Cir. on horizon? Breaking up 9th Cir. hard to do - February 10, 2016 - Breaking up the Ninth Circuit as proposed by Arizona politicians wouldn’t be as simple as the division of the Fifth Circuit and the resulting creation of the Eleventh were in 1981, according to law professors and former Ninth Circuit clerks. Brian T. Fitzpatrick, professor of law, is quoted extensively throughout the article.

Bloomberg BNA: Class Action Litigation Report: More judges scrutinizing class claims data? If so, so what? - February 5, 2016 - A California judge recently asked for data on claims rates before she would approve a class settlement over defective brakes in Nissan vehicles. She might be on to something big. This is not a common practice among judges in class actions, but maybe it should be. Attorneys on both sides of the class action bar say the move for transparency could have unexpected consequences. Brian Fitzpatrick, professor of law, is quoted.

Nashville Scene: Sentenced without a trial - February 4, 2016 - Three Somali brothers from Middle Tennessee, accused of participating in an organized crime ring, have served between two and four years in a federal jail, but they have yet to face a jury. Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law, is quoted.

Los Angeles Review of Books: On killing dogs - February 2, 2016 - With Dogs at the Edge of Life, a new book by Colin Dayan, Robert Penn Warren Professor in the Humanities, professor of American studies and professor of law, is reviewed.

Arkansas Business: Facebook posts raise questions for employers - February 1, 2016 - The Arkansas Court of Appeals ruled in December that a woman who was fired for posting “arguably” critical comments about her employer on Facebook could receive unemployment benefits. It’s the latest decision in an escalating legal war between employment and social media. David Hudson, adjunct professor of law, is quoted.

January 2016

The Christian Science Monitor: Could Barack Obama become a Supreme Court justice? - January 28, 2016 - At a political event in Iowa, an audience member asked Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton whether she would nominate President Obama for a role on the Supreme Court. Clinton responded by saying the president would make a great Supreme Court justice. So, could President Barack Obama become the next Supreme Court justice? Suzanna Sherry, Herman O. Loewenstein Professor of Law, is quoted. Related stories were posted by The National Law Journal (subscription required) and Australia Network News.

Greenwire: Supreme Court’s FERC opinion offers clues about next big case - January 27, 2016 - Energy experts are mining a major Supreme Court decision issued yesterday for clues about what it could mean for another high-stakes energy market case pending before the justices. Both cases hinge on federal versus state management of power markets. Professor of Law Jim Rossi, who coauthored an amicus brief calling on the court to back FERC’s authority, is quoted. Subscription may be required to view the story.

Washington Post: Supreme Court: Life sentences on juveniles open for later reviews - January 26, 2016 - The Supreme Court ruled Monday that those sentenced as teenagers to mandatory life imprisonment for murder must have a chance to argue that they be released from prison. The ruling expanded the court’s 2012 decision that struck down mandatory life terms without parole for juveniles and said it must be applied retroactively to what juvenile advocates estimate are 1,200 to 1,500 cases. Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law, is quoted.

Environment & Energy News: FERC emboldened by Supreme Court victory - January 25, 2016 - A landmark Supreme Court opinion issued Monday underscored the government’s power to regulate an evolving electric grid. In a 6-2 opinion, the high court sided with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission by reviving the agency’s contentious “demand-response” rule aimed at encouraging energy conservation. Professor of Law Jim Rossi, who co-authored an amicus brief calling on the court to back FERC’s authority, is quoted.

Fresno Bee (California): YouthBuild lauded for keeping Fresno students from repeat offenses - January 25, 2016 - Fresno students who were incarcerated and enrolled in the nonprofit education and job skills program YouthBuild are highly unlikely to relapse into criminal behavior, according to a report released Thursday. The article mentions Mark Cohen, Justin Potter Professor of American Competitive Enterprise and professor of law, who has studied the YouthBuild model.

Federalist Society: Mike Lewis Memorial Teleforum—Defining the Laws of War, podcast - January 19, 2016 -Michael Newton, professor of the practice of law, joins a panel of experts to critique the Department of Defense Manual. Does it provide the guidance necessary to troops on the ground, commanders, and all actors in between? How does it address modern warfare, terrorism, and asymmetrical war? How does it define lawful and unlawful belligerents? What does it say about interrogation and detention?

Environment & Energy News: No news may be good news for FERC in grid case (subscription required) - January 14, 2016 - After the Supreme Court heard oral arguments over a major energy conservation rule in October, supporters of the regulation were anxious. Their fear: A divided court would act swiftly to reject a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission “demand-response” rule requiring power users to be paid for committing to scale back electricity use at times of peak demand. But the passage of weeks and then months with no decision could be a signal that the justices will do more than simply kill the regulation. Jim Rossi, professor of law, is quoted.

Yahoo Politics: Is Ted Cruz ineligible for the presidency? - January 14, 2016 - As Ted Cruz overtook real estate mogul Donald Trump in Iowa polls earlier this month, his rival tossed a political bombshell at the Texas senator. Trump began questioning whether Cruz is eligible to be president at all, given that he was born in Canada. Suzanna Sherry, Herman O. Loewenstein Professor of Law, is quoted.

Boston Review: Colin Dayan’s ethics without reason - January 12, 2016 - With Dogs at the Edge of Life, a new book by Colin Dayan, Robert Penn Warren Professor in the Humanities, professor of American studies and professor of law, is reviewed.

Salon: Perjury USA: Rampant police lying taints criminal justice system nationwide - January 7, 2016 - Misplaced trust in law enforcement can lead to injustice, as evidenced by the Chicago police who witnessed Officer Jason Van Dyke kill Laquan McDonald in a hail of sixteen bullets but then lied to cover it up. According to civil rights attorneys, this type of systemic police lying is a nationwide problem. The article cites research by Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law.

Chronicle of Higher Education: 10 revealing tidbits we found in football coaches’ contracts - December 17, 2015 - Compensation for big-time college football coaches has more than doubled in the past decade, with increasingly generous perks. But few incentives in their contracts are tied to academics, despite many NCAA and college leaders’ insistence that the sport has an educational foundation. Those are among the findings from a Vanderbilt University study of employment agreements at more than 100 major college programs. The co-authors Randall S. Thomas, John S. Beasley II Professor of Law and Business, and Larry Van Horn, associate professor of management, law and health policy, are mentioned.

Inside Higher Ed: Review: A dog’s life - December 16, 2015 - Scott McLemee, intellectual affairs columnist for Inside Higher Ed, reviews With Dogs at the Edge of Life by Colin Dayan, Robert Penn Warren Professor in the Humanities, professor of American studies and professor of law.

Bloomberg Radiointerviewed James Blumstein, University Professor of Constitutional Law and Health Law and Policy, about how the U.S. Supreme Court will rule on a case challenging affirmative action in university admissions.

Voice of America: Investigators: Shooters planned California attack for a year - December 9, 2015 - Investigators say the husband and wife who killed 14 people in Southern California last week planned the attack for as long as a year. Suzanna Sherry, Herman O. Loewenstein Professor of Law, is quoted about Donald Trump’s call for a temporary ban on Muslims entering the U.S.

Los Angeles Times: Opinion: Justices will get no satisfaction with a new ‘one person, one vote’ rule - December 8, 2015 - At the Supreme Court on Tuesday, the justices struggled over the meaning of the 1960s-era “one person, one vote” rule. Should Texas legislative districts contain an equal number of people—as they do now—or an equal number of eligible voters, as the plaintiffs in Evenwel vs. Abbott demand? Ultimately, the justices may have no choice but to heed some other words written in the 1960s: You can’t always get what you want, writes Richard L. Hasen, professor of law and political science at University of California, Irvine. He mentions a forthcoming paper by Paul Edelman, professor of mathematics and law.

New York Times Magazine: How will the Supreme Court rule on Affirmative Action? - December 8, 2015 - It’s been a season of attention to racial inequality on American college campuses. Across the country minority students and their supporters have channeled the spirit of Black Lives Matter and demanded more. The Supreme Court in Fisher v. University of Texas, may be poised to make them settle for less, in the most basic form: fewer seats in the future entering college and university classes. Brian Fitzpatrick, professor of law, is quoted. A related story ran in Powerline, in which James Blumstein, University Professor of Constitutional Law and Health Law and Policy, was mentioned.

Voice of America: Could U.S. legally bar Muslims from country? - December 8, 2015 - Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump set off a political firestorm Monday when he called for at least temporarily barring Muslims from entering the United States—even U.S. citizens trying to return from travels outside the country. Earlier, fellow GOP candidate Ted Cruz proposed accepting for U.S. resettlement only those Syrian refugees who are Christian. But could the nation’s chief executive legitimately order such actions, even with congressional approval? Suzanna Sherry, Herman O. Loewenstein Professor of Law, is quoted.

Carol Swain, professor of political science and law, was interviewed on CNN’s Smerconish showabout Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump’s remarks about the role of political correctness in last week’s San Bernardino shooting.

Carol Swain was interviewed on Fox News’ Justice with Judge Jeanine (national) about profiling and President Obama’s remarks on terrorism.

Bloomberg Radiointerviewed Ingrid Wuerth, professor of law, about the U.S. Supreme Court’s first decision of its new term, which ruled a California woman cannot sue Austria’s state-owned national railway system in U.S. courts over an injury she suffered while boarding a train.

November 2015

Epoch Times: FAA seeks to push through drone registry in time for Christmas - November 30, 2015 - The Federal Aviation Agency, notorious for its delays in rolling out drone regulation, plans to create a mandatory registration system for consumer drones that will go in effect by mid-December—just in time for the expected deluge of new drone purchases for Christmas. Kevin Stack, professor of law, is quoted.

Washington Post: D.C. court considers how to screen out ‘bad science’ in local trials - November 24, 2015 - The D.C. Court of Appeals on Tuesday will consider whether to change the rules for how judges admit expert witnesses—a courtroom procedural matter that can have major implications for criminal trials and civil product-liability lawsuits. If the court decides to switch to the standard used in most states and in federal courtrooms, local judges would be given a more robust role in filtering the evidence juries weigh at trial. Professor of Law Edward Cheng, who holds the Tarkington Chair in Teaching Excellence, is quoted.

Nashville Public Radiointerviewed Ingrid Wuerth, professor of law, about Gov. Bill Haslam’s joining other GOP lawmakers in a move asking federal officials to suspend the resettlement of Syrian refugees to Tennessee following the Paris terrorist attacks.

Foreign Policy: To close Guantánamo, Obama will have to test the limits of presidential power - November 12, 2015 - The White House is soon expected to unveil its long-delayed plan to close the Guantánamo prison—a package that will include options for transferring the remaining detainees to high-security prisons in Colorado, Kansas or South Carolina and an assessment of the related costs and logistics. Ingrid Wuerth, professor of law, is mentioned.

America Tonighton Al Jazeera America (national) interviewed James Blumstein, University Professor of Constitutional Law and Health Law and Policy, regarding student law school debt and the worth of a law school education. The interview was conducted at VUStar, Vanderbilt’s campus broadcast facility.

Worcester Telegram & Gazette (Massachusetts): Ruling in Worcester case makes it tough for cities to curb panhandling - November 12, 2015 - A judge’s ruling Monday that two Worcester ordinances on panhandling violated free speech rights came as no surprise to several lawyers familiar with First Amendment issues. Rather, attorneys suggested the surprise will be if any similar ordinances survive. David Hudson, adjunct professor of law, is quoted.

Libertarian Republic: Opinion: Federal bureaucrats find ‘superhighway’ around 4th, 5th Amendments - November 12, 2015 - The courts’ interpretations of the Constitution have allowed federal agencies to demand everything from Social Security numbers to medical records without a judge’s prior approval, so long as the information is “relevant” to the agency’s work. Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law, is quoted.

Phys.org: Study cites gap between theory and practice in natural resource management - November 11, 2015 - Natural resource agencies have embraced an approach known as adaptive management to adjust and refine their management plans in the face of uncertainties caused by climate change and the functioning of complex ecosystems. But a paper co-written by an Indiana University law professor finds that agencies often apply adaptive management in ways that fail to promote learning. The study, being published by the journal Conservation Biology and available online, is co-authored by J.B. Ruhl, David Daniels Allen Distinguished Professor of Law.

The Atlantic: Borrowing while poor - November 5, 2015 - The market for quick, small loans has long been inadequate. Because banks would rather lend $50,000 than $500, and tend to require strong credit histories to borrow at all, the options for families that are down and out, or a bit behind on their bills, are limited. Paige Skiba, professor of law, is quoted.

October 2015

New York Times: Arbitration everywhere, stacking the deck of justice - October 31, 2015 - By inserting individual arbitration clauses into a soaring number of consumer and employment contracts, companies like American Express have devised a way to circumvent the courts and bar people from joining together in class-action lawsuits—realistically the only tool citizens have to fight illegal or deceitful business practices. Brian T. Fitzpatrick, professor of law, is quoted.

Christian Science Monitor: Prayer at one Washington school: Religious freedom on the 50-yard line? - October 30, 2015 - At the 50-yard line of the high school football field, a battle is brewing over the meaning of the First Amendment. The Bremerton School District in Washington State put assistant varsity football coach Joe Kennedy on paid administrative leave this week after he failed to comply with directives to stop overt public displays of religion on the field while on duty. David Hudson, adjunct professor of law, is quoted.

Environment & Energy News: Supreme Court’s challenge: Fit new grid into old law - October 22, 2015 - In a move that surprised energy experts, the U.S. Supreme Court has decided to hear at least two cases this year that deal with how to regulate evolving electricity markets. It’s an unusual amount of attention being paid by the high court to complex energy policies, and many attribute the heightened scrutiny to the rapidly changing nature of the grid and electricity markets. Jim Rossi, professor of law, is quoted.

Nature: Courage of conviction - October 21, 2015 - As a result of rapid technical advancements, neuroscience and other scientific disciplines are poised to bring more researchers into courtrooms. That presents scientists with an opportunity for well-compensated public service, but it can be a double-edged sword. The demands of the courtroom can be exasperating and sometimes even threaten professional reputations. Owen Jones, New York Alumni Chancellor’s Professor of Law, is quoted.

The Tennessean: Experts say longer sentences don’t reduce crime - October 19, 2015 - Sending someone to prison longer is no indication they’ll be less likely to commit a crime once they’re released, and longer sentences don’t dissuade others from committing that crime, experts told Tennessee lawmakers Monday. Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law Christopher Slobogin, one of six people to testify at the Senate Judiciary Committee meeting, is quoted.

The Guardian (United Kingdom): US tank enters ruined Afghan hospital putting ‘war crime’ evidence at risk - October 18, 2015 - Afghan hospital officials say ‘forced entry’ by a U.S. military vehicle – later said to be carrying investigators into the October 3 airstrike that killed 22 patients and staff – caused stress and fear, which prompted warnings that the U.S. military may have destroyed evidence in a potential war crimes investigation. Michael A. Newton, professor of the practice of law, is quoted.

Greenwire: Backers of energy-saving rule fret over policy’s legal fate - October 15, 2015 - This week, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments about the legality of a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission “demand-response” rule requiring power users to be paid for committing to scale back electricity use at times of peak demand. Backers of a major energy conservation rule — including one of its biggest champions — are nervous about the regulation’s fate. Jim Rossi, professor of law, is quoted. (subscription may be required)

Nashville Scene: With confirmation hearings running far behind, Tennessee’s federal judicial nominees are left to cool their heels - October 15, 2015 - There are 29 nominees across the country currently awaiting confirmation to federal judgeships by the Republican-controlled U.S. Senate—31, if you count two awaiting future vacancies. And that doesn’t even touch the total of 67 empty seats, according to the American Bar Association. Meanwhile the Senate has confirmed just seven nominees this calendar year—a rate so slow it can only be compared to the Eisenhower administration 60 years ago. Tracey George, Charles B. Cox III and Lucy D. Cox Family Professor of Law and Liberty, is quoted. A related story appeared in The Nashville Post.

Daily Caller: House bill lets bureaucrats read your email without a warrant - October 9, 2015 - A bill before Congress that politicians on both sides of the aisle in Washington praise for strengthening civil liberties may actually protect Internet giants like Google and hand federal bureaucrats the power to subpoena every American’s email without first getting a judge’s approval. Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law, is quoted.

Duetsche Welle (Germany): Kunduz airstrike highlights systemic problems in US targeting - October 8, 2015 - Doctors Without Borders says the bombing of its hospital was a war crime, while the United States says it was a tragic mistake. The loss of civilian life is often the consequence of systemic problems in how strikes are conducted. Michael Newton, professor of the practice of law, is quoted.

New York Times: A shifting approach to saving endangered species - October 7, 2015 - For conservation to succeed, some environmentalists argue, it must work on a larger scale, focusing not on preserving single species in small islands of wilderness but on large landscapes and entire ecosystems, and the benefits that nature provides to humans. J.B. Ruhl, David Daniels Allen Distinguished Chair of Law and director of the energy, environment and land use program at Vanderbilt Law School, is quoted.

New York Times: Rihanna defended Rachel Dolezal, the white woman who claimed to be black - October 7, 2015 -Rihanna, a musician who is beloved by her fans for saying and doing pretty much whatever she wants, finally seemed to cross a line. In a cover interview for Vanity Fair, the pop diva appeared to defend Rachel Dolezal, the white civil rights activist who claimed to be black. Daniel Sharfstein, professor of law and historian of race, is quoted.

The Conversation: Could Iran continue its nuclear program in Syria? - October 5, 2015 - The Maginot Line was a defense strategy designed by the French after World War I to guard against invasion by Germany. The Maginot Line did not work. And now, it seems fair to ask — at least from the perspective of this law professor — whether the limitations and risks laid bare by this famous strategic misstep might also apply to the Iranian nuclear agreement, writes James Blumstein, University Professor of Constitutional Law and Health Law and Policy.

September 2015

Washington Post: Secret Service officials allowed to participate in probe of leak by agency - September 29, 2015 - During a nearly completed investigation of the Secret Service, the Department of Homeland Security has taken the unorthodox step of allowing officials from the service to work alongside its agents as they try to determine how unflattering information about a congressman was leaked. Legal experts and former government investigators say the approach threatens the integrity of the investigation. Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law, is quoted.

Quartz: A magnetic pulse to the brain will change your views on criminal punishment - September 25, 2015 - We like to think of our sense of justice as a transcendental righteousness of the spirit, but in fact the human sense of right and wrong is rooted firmly in the physical brain. Researchers have discovered that our ability to choose appropriate punishments for a crime can be tampered with simply by applying magnets to part of the brain. Owen Jones, New York Alumni Chancellor’s Professor of Law and an author of the study, is quoted.

The Tennessean: TN lawyers receive OK to store secrets in cloud - September 24, 2015 - Tennessee lawyers can store confidential documents and information in the cloud, according to an ethics board’s opinion issued this month. The opinion says attorneys can put information on the third-party, remote digital storage systems as long as they take “reasonable care” to make sure that information stays confidential and is protected from being hacked. Daniel Gervais, professor of law, is quoted.

Wall Street Journal: Opinion: Critics of free market shouldn’t overreach - September 23, 2015 - It has been a good month for free-market skeptics. In Britain, an avowed socialist is the new leader of the Labour Party. Pope Francis, who condemns markets for promoting “extreme consumerism,” arrived in the U.S. to a rock star’s welcome. And now, the very people you’d expect to come to the defense of markets are joining the attack: economists. Research by W. KipViscusi, University Distinguished Professor of Law, Economics and Management, is mentioned.

U.S. News & World Report: Freddie Gray course teaches social justice to law students - September 21, 2015 - After Freddie Gray died in April of a spinal injury days after being arrested in Baltimore, the city erupted. There were peaceful protests as well as riots, but administration and faculty at the University of Maryland’s Carey School of Law had a different reaction: They designed a class to discuss the underlying problems that lead to this type of conflict and how law can be used to improve social justice. Vanderbilt Law School’s Social Justice Program is mentioned, and Spring Miller, assistant dean for public interest, is quoted.

Modern Healthcare: Another ACA contraception case may be headed to Supreme Court - September 18, 2015 - A federal appeals court sided for the first time against an Obama administration policy intended to make sure the employees of not-for-profit religious organizations can get birth control at no cost. The case is one of many working their way through the federal courts challenging parts of the Obama administration’s policy on providing contraception for women as part of preventive services. James Blumstein, University Professor of Constitutional Law and Health Law and Policy, is quoted.

Modern Healthcare: Another ACA contraception case may be headed to Supreme Court - September 17, 2015 - A federal appeals court on Thursday sided for the first time against an Obama administration policy intended to ensure that employees of not-for-profit religious organizations can get birth control at no cost. The decision creates a split in the circuit courts, increasing the likelihood that the U.S. Supreme Court will agree to hear a case on the issue. James Blumstein, University Professor of Constitutional Law and Health Law and Policy, is quoted.

Discovery News: Crime and punishment in the brain - September 17, 2015 - According to a new study, two different regions of the brain separately deal with judgment of guilt or innocence and assessment of punishment. By stimulating the latter, researchers at Vanderbilt University and Harvard University figured out a way to influence penalty decisions. The study’s co-author Owen Jones, New York Alumni Chancellor’s Professor of Law, is quoted. The story also was reported by the Daily Mail (U.K.), Brain Decoder, Futurity and Red Orbit.

Wall Street Journal: Personal injury plaintiffs may benefit from new litigation funding marketplaceWhen people sue over a personal injury, they often can wait years to see any sort of payout, even as they suffer from a loss of wages or other financial distress. Startup Mighty Group Inc., which raised venture funding this year, has launched a marketplace where accredited investors compete against each other to provide a few thousand dollars to such plaintiffs to tide them over. Jennifer Reinganum, E. Bronson Ingram Professor of Economics and professor of law, is quoted.

Associated Press: Mom found with dead son in playground swing indicted - September 15, 2015 - The facts are hard to fathom: A mother alone with her 3-year-old son on a Maryland playground for two days straight, pushing him in a swing until he died of dehydration and low body temperature—pushing him even after he died until finally sheriff’s deputies came to investigate. But was she suffering from a mental illness so severe that a criminal prosecution is misplaced? Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law, is quoted.

Modern Healthcare: Obama administration likely to appeal preliminary ACA ruling - September 14, 2015 - The White House isn’t likely to wait long to challenge Wednesday’s ruling allowing House Republicans to sue the Obama administration for spending federal funds on the Affordable Care Act’s cost-sharing assistance. The administration is expected to seek what’s called an interlocutory appeal, which would allow a higher court to consider the issue of whether the House has standing to sue before the lower court addresses the merits of the case. James Blumstein, University Professor of Constitutional Law and Health Law and Policy, is quoted.

WSMV, Channel 4, interviewed Suzanna Sherry, Herman O. Loewenstein Professor of Law, about the likely legal outcome of the case against the county clerk in Kentucky who has refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples.

August 2015

Voice of America: No easy way to repeal, amend ‘birthright citizenship’ - August 26, 2015 - A constitutional amendment passed nearly 150 years ago to give U.S. citizenship to freed slaves has become a hot-button issue in the 2016 presidential campaign. Last week, leading Republican presidential contender Donald Trump unveiled his campaign’s immigration plan, including a controversial proposal to end granting “birthright citizenship”—automatic citizenship to any child born on U.S. soil. Suzanna Sherry, Herman O. Loewenstein Professor of Law, is quoted.

Sinclair Broadcast Group: ‘Organizational confusion’ doesn’t stop Black Lives Matter from swaying Dems - August 17, 2015 - Though Black Lives Matter is a national social movement, it is actually the product of many regional organizing groups, with some variation in their agendas and methods. But they are having an impact on the Democratic presidential race. An instance in which two activists from a Seattle group interrupted and ultimately shut down a rally by presidential candidate Bernie Sanders is mentioned, and Carol Swain, professor of political science and law, is quoted.

The Tennessean: Despite data, TN not declaring prison overcrowding emergency - August 10, 2015 - The Tennessee prison system is at a capacity level that could allow the governor to declare an overcrowding emergency, giving him and other state officials the power to reduce the number of inmates to a safer level, according to data obtained by The Tennessean. Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law, is quoted.

July 2015

Washington Post: Did Gov. Bobby Jindal censor Westboro Baptist’s free speech? - July 30, 2015 - Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal issued an executive order barring Westboro Baptist Church protesters from the Monday (July 27) funerals of Lafayette shooting victims. The group ultimately didn’t show. But the ordeal raises a question: If Westboro members had protested, would their picketing be protected as free speech? And, if so, did Jindal’s executive order infringe on the church’s First Amendment rights? David Hudson Jr., adjunct professor of law, is quoted.

News and Record (Greensboro, N.C.): The courts can’t seem to stay out of partisan politics - July 29, 2015 - North Carolina has just adopted a retention election process for its Supreme Court, which will likely divide Republicans and Democrats when Justice Bob Edmunds of Greensboro is up for re-election next year. Brian Fitzpatrick, FedEx Research Professor of Law, is quoted about similar retention referendums in Tennessee.

The Tennessean: Tennessee may extend prison sentences - July 20, 2015 - A task force appointed by Gov. Bill Haslam to look at prison sentencing is considering recommendations for longer jail terms. The discussion is occurring as the state already has prisons at capacity, is struggling to control incarceration costs and is dealing with a shortage of correctional officers. Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law is quoted.

Associated Press: After all is said in theater attack trial, was Holmes sane? - July 13, 2015 - Jurors in the case of the Colorado theater shooting must determine whether James Holmes has met the state’s threshold for an insanity verdict, by suffering from mental illness so severe that it rendered him unable to tell right from wrong at the time of the shootings. Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law, is quoted.

Associated Press: Silicon Valley company starts to take court disputes online - July 13, 2015 - A Silicon Valley company is developing dispute-resolution software that experts say represents the next wave of technology in which the law is turned into computer code that can solve legal battles without the need for a judge or attorney. Larry Bridgesmith, adjunct professor of law, is quoted. The story appeared in news outlets throughout the country.

Nashville Ledger: Opinion: Special action on same-sex nuptials a waste of time - July 13, 2015 - New legislation purporting to protect religious leaders from being forced to perform same-sex marriages in violation of their beliefs is unnecessary because the First Amendment already protects that right, says Brian Fitzpatrick, professor of law.

Bloomberg: What does Harper Lee want? - July 9, 2015 - Author Harper Lee’s second novel, Go Set a Watchman, which was written before To Kill a Mockingbird, is the most preordered book in her publisher’s history. It’s also a book she vowed never to publish. Jeffrey Schoenblum, Centennial Professor of Law, is quoted about the role of the lawyer who negotiated the book deal and the problems that might arise with the management of Lee’s estate.

San Diego Jewish World: Pope, rabbis agree: world must deal with climate - July 1, 2015 - Last month, more than 350 North American rabbis issued an ”open letter” on global warming concerns, declaring that the time for action was at hand. Edward Rubin, University Professor of Law and Political Science, is quoted.

WTVF (Nashville, Tenn.) interviewed Suzanna Sherry, Herman O. Loewenstein Professor of Law, about the ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court to legalize same-sex marriages across the country.

Refinery29: Overweight and unprotected from workplace discrimination - June 26, 2015 - The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission discrimination laws may cover workers who are morbidly obese, because the disease falls within the scope of the Americans with Disabilities Act, but not just any size-related case of bias. The story cites research by Assistant Professor of Law, Jennifer Shinall, showing that weight gain is associated with lower pay and poorer job prospects in women, but not men.

The Tennessean:King vs. Burwell: Supreme Court affirms Obamacare subsidies - June 25, 2015 - The Supreme Court handed the Obama administration—and the 155,753 Tennesseans who receive tax credits—a win Thursday in the battle over tax credit subsidies for health insurance with a 6-3 ruling in the landmark King vs. Burwell case. James Blumstein, University Professor of Constitutional Law and Health Law and Policy, and adjunct professor of law, Michele Johnson, are quoted.

Fox Business Network (national) interviewed Brian Fitzpatrick, FedEx Research Professor of Law, about upcoming rulings by the Supreme Court, such as the federal subsidies associated with the Affordable Care Act.

Wall Street Journal: The gay marriage case: How the Supreme Court could rule - June 24, 2015 - The potential outcomes in the gay marriage battle before the Supreme Court are both straightforward and legally complex. If the nation’s highest court rules that gay marriage bans are unconstitutional, same-sex marriage would become legal across the country. If justices rule against gay marriage, that would leave in place state bans currently in effect. Depending how justices frame their arguments, their ruling could have big legal implications beyond the fate of gay marriage. Brian Fitzpatrick, 2014-15 FedEx Research Professor of Law, is quoted in this piece in the Wall Street Journal Law Blog.

The Tennessean: Analysis: As King vs. Burwell wait lingers, signs emerge - June 19, 2015 - The U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling on a case involving the Affordable Care Act and the challenge by the plaintiffs that its health insurance subsidies for people who bought plans through federal exchanges are illegal based on the wording of one phrase of the law has been delayed. James Blumstein, University Professor of Constitutional Law and Health Law and Policy, is quoted.

Bloomberg Review: Who is a corporation supposed to serve? - June 16, 2015 - The shareholders are the owners of a publicly traded corporation, and it is the job of the directors to look out for their interests. To many investors, financial journalists, corporate executives and even board members, these are self-evident truths. As a matter of corporate law and history, though, they’re only partial truths, and recent ones at that. The idea that the corporation and board exist to serve shareholders, while it certainly had its adherents before then, really only became widely accepted in the 1980s and 1990s. Over the past decade, though, there has been a flood of complaint that the principal-agent, shareholder-value-maximizing view of the corporation is wrong or at least incomplete. A Brookings Institution paper by Margaret Blair, Milton R. Underwood Professor of Free Enterprise, is quoted.

Christian Science Monitor: ‘I identify as black': Historical precedent for Rachel Dolezal (+video) - June 16, 2015 - Despite the furor that erupted over the past few days, Rachel Dolezal is not the first white person to “identify” as a person of a different race. Throughout United States history, scholars say, the phenomenon of racial “passing” has included hundreds of thousands of people of many races attempting to live their lives within the typical cultural trappings of another ethnic group. Daniel Sharfstein, professor of law, is quoted.

U.S. News and World Report: Obama, GOP on offense leading up to health care ruling- June 15, 2015 - Analysts say that while the Supreme Court has likely decided the fundamental issue at the heart of King v. Burwell, the president might yet have the opportunity to sway certain parts of its decision to his favor in a manner that could go a long way in determining the scope of the ruling or the timing of its implementation. James Blumstein, University Professor of Constitutional Law and Health Law and Policy, is quoted.

WalletHub: ChexSystems score: What it is and how to improve it- June 15, 2015 - Your ChexSystems score is primarily used to predict your future banking behavior and the prospect that you will mismanage your account — in other words, how risky it is for a bank to open an account for you. Yesha Yadav, associate professor of law, is quoted.

The Hill: Obama’s Supreme Court gambit - June 11, 2015 - President Obama’s impassioned defense of the Affordable Care Act is riling opponents of the law and drawing accusations he’s trying to bully the Supreme Court. But Obama’s pointed comments, which appeared to be aimed at least partly at influencing the justices, are baffling some court-watchers who say that the decision in the King v. Burwell case was likely settled long ago. James Blumstein, University Professor of Constitutional Law and Health Law and Policy, is quoted.

National Law Journal: Narrow Facebook ruling riles Supreme Court dissenters - June 4, 2015 - The U.S. Supreme Court’s long-awaited ruling Monday on the prosecution of Facebook threats turned out to be one of those narrow decisions that Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. has touted as the way to achieve greater unanimity. Suzanna Sherry, Herman O. Loewenstein Professor of Law, is quoted. A subscription is required to view the full article.

TakePart.com: Snowden’s leaks reformed the NSA, but America still spies on the poor - June 3, 2015 - Data collection and the broader issue of privacy have been fiercely debated, especially since 2013, when former NSA contractor Edward Snowden blew the whistle on the government’s process. But for poor communities—particularly poor communities of color—Snowden’s revelations were one more drop in the bucket of government surveillance. Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law, is quoted.

The Tennessean: Experts preview ACA tax credit ruling showdown - June 1, 2015 - The health care industry has been on pins and needles awaiting a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in a case that will decide the future of health insurance tax credits — and nearly three months after oral arguments, the decision month is here. James Blumstein, University Professor of Constitutional Law and Health Law and Policy, is interviewed.

Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law, was a guest on NPR’s Here and Now discussing the trial of accused Colorado movie theater shooter James Holmes and the challenges of using an insanity defense. May 28, 2015

Tucson Explorer (Arizona): Denying free speech or protecting the truth? - May 28, 2015 - A local resident was kicked off the town’s Facebook page after posting in the comments thread for a photo from the May 2 ribbon cutting at a local community and recreation center. The town’s legal director said the Facebook page is a “limited public forum,” giving the town wide latitude in controlling content. David Hudson, adjunct professor of law and ombudsman at the First Amendment Center at Vanderbilt, is quoted.

Huffington Post: Vanderbilt Law Commencement speaker explains what to do if you don’t love what you do - May 26, 2015 - Vanderbilt University Law School Assistant Professor Ganesh Sitaraman discussed three paths to leading a valuable life in his commencement speech at the school earlier this month. The first path was “the integrationist model,” to integrate one’s most cherished values with one’s professional life. This, he said, is a way to do what you love and love what you do. The second method was to find value outside of your office, and the final way was to have sincere appreciation and commitment for the profession itself. The speech was printed in its entirety in the New York Observer.

Huffington Post: Why is the nuclear regulatory commission undervaluing American lives? - May 22, 2015 - When federal agencies consider adopting new health and safety rules, they often reevaluate the proposed rule’s costs against its lifesaving benefits. These agencies determine what’s called the “value of a statistical life” (VSL) based on a variety of economic and labor market studies. However, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has been using the same value — $3 million — for the past two decades. That’s two to three times lower than other agencies’ calculations. W. Kip Viscusi, University Distinguished Professor of Law, Economics, and Management, is quoted.

Bergen County Record (New Jersey): North Jersey teachers learn social media’s traps the hard way - May 18, 2015 - As social media use grows, teachers are learning that what they post online can get them in trouble even if it is done on their own time and on their personal Web pages. David Hudson, adjunct professor of law and ombudsman at the First Amendment Center at Vanderbilt, is quoted.

Mother Jones: 87 reasons to rethink the death penalty - May 4, 2015 - Intellectual disability is just one of several mitigating factors that, at least in theory, are supposed to spare people from execution. The death penalty, the Supreme Court has noted, is intended for the worst of the worst—offenders more depraved than your average murderer, who have what the courts call “extreme culpability.” Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law, is quoted from an essay he wrote regarding capital defendants who plead not guilty by reason of insanity and are subsequently found guilty.

April 2015

Reuters: Activists good, bigger activists better - April 30, 2015 - A new study by Randall Thomas, John S. Beasley II Professor of Law and Business, looking at the performance of activist hedge funds, which buy shares and then push companies to change strategy, shows continued strong results on interventions from 2008 through mid-2014.

Associated Press: Justice Kennedy sent clearer signal in 2013 marriage case - April 29, 2015 - Two years ago, Justice Anthony Kennedy left little doubt during Supreme Court arguments that a part of the federal anti-gay marriage law was doomed. When the justices heard arguments Tuesday in a broader case about the right of same-sex couples to marry anywhere in the United States, the 78-year-old Kennedy’s comments were less clear-cut and his potentially decisive vote less certain than it was two years ago. Brian Fitzpatrick, 2014/15 FedEx Research Professor of Law, is quoted. A related story, also quoting Fitzpatrick, was reported by the Nashville Business Journal: At Supreme Court Tuesday, Tennessee to help shape future of gay marriage. Fitzpatrick was also quoted in a follow up article in the Tennessean regarding concerns of a slippery slope to allowing polygamy.

Associated Press: Prosecutor: Two exams found James Holmes to be sane - April 28, 2015 - A prosecutor declared Monday that two mental health evaluations found Colorado theater gunman James Holmes to be sane. It was the first public word on what different psychiatrists determined after examining the former neuroscience student accused of killing 12 people and wounding 70 at a midnight “Batman” premiere. Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law and professor of psychiatry, is quoted.

New York Times: Lawyers seek sea change on gay rights at Supreme Court - April 27, 2015 - When the Supreme Court hears arguments in four cases that could result in nationwide recognition of same-sex marriage, rights groups are hoping to secure not only the right to marry but also a symbolic and practical victory that would transform the status of gay Americans, affirming their dignity and protecting them from other kinds of government discrimination. Brian Fitzpatrick, professor of law, is quoted.

Associated Press: Long odds for insanity defense in theater shooting trial - April 27, 2015 - The key to the death penalty trial of a man who methodically shot at moviegoers at a Batman movie premiere will be what was going on inside his mind as he threw smoke canisters and then marched up and down the aisles, firing at anyone who tried to flee. Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law and professor of psychiatry, is quoted.

The Tennessean: Tennessee at forefront as gay marriage case goes to Supreme Court - April 24, 2015 - The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments Tuesday in a landmark case that could legalize gay marriage nationwide. Legal analysts say the case could do for gay couples what historic cases such as Brown v. Board of Education did for black Americans ending segregation and what Roe v. Wade did for women’s rights allowing abortions. Brian Fitzpatrick, professor of law, is quoted.

TakePart: Ben Affleck wanted to hide his past, but America can’t escape slavery - April 23, 2015 - While participating in a celebrity genealogy show, Ben Affleck was embarrassed to discover his family’s slaveowning past and sought to remove that chapter from the episode. Daniel Sharfstein, professor of law, has studied the history of race in America and says that the omission is a missed opportunity to model the discussion for other families with similar backgrounds.

Wall Street Journal: Opinion: The surprising market response to activist hedge funds - April 23, 2015 - Critics say hedge funds destroy companies by pushing them to load up with debt, lay off employees, slash research and development, and pump up short-term dividends and profits. But new research coauthored by Randall Thomas, John S. Beasley II Professor of Law and Business, suggests hedge fund activism is positive overall.

Businessjournalism.org: Money and politics: On tax day, fixing the U.S. Tax Code - April 15, 2015 - As last-minute filers send checks to the Internal Revenue Service, we thought it would be a good idea to share this video, “Four Ideas to Improve U.S. Tax System” with our readers. The talk features Beverly Moran, professor of law and sociology, and posits a number of ways America’s tax code can be revised to close loopholes, shift the burden away from the less wealthy and strengthen social security.

Red Orbit: Morality is not decaying, just changing, says professor - April 9, 2015 - A new book by Ed Rubin, University Professor of Law and Political Science, argues that Western morality’s shift away from serving a higher purpose and toward individual fulfillment isn’t a symptom of anything bad—just a reflection of changing times. The story includes an interview with Rubin produced by Vanderbilt News and Communications.

San Diego Jewish World: Law school professor writing cli-fi novel - April 9, 2015 - Ed Rubin, University Professor of Law and Political Science, is the author of academic books about law and justice; however, he’s very concerned about climate change. Rubin is profiled for his latest effort writing a cli-fi novel set in the near future.

The New Republic: The killing of Walter Scott sheds light on the problem of police lying - April 8, 2015 - The gulf between the report filed by a South Carolina police officer about a shooting and what can be seen on a video of the incident is a powerful reminder that while police officers are generally believed to be highly credible, corruption can exist. Research on police corruption by Christopher Slobogin, Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law, is mentioned.

The Wall Street Journal: Opinion: How to end ObamaCare in two pages - September 18, 2017 - James Blumstein, University Professor of Constitutional Law and Health Law and Policy, writes an opinion piece that offers a legislative strategy for the GOP’s push to repeal the Affordable Care Act.

New York Times: Our Constitution Wasn't Built for This - September 16, 2017 - Professor Ganesh Sitaraman's column focuses on the theme of his new book, “The Crisis of the Middle-Class Constitution: Why Economic Inequality Threatens Our Republic.” It appeared in the Sept. 16 Sunday Review section of the New York Times.

Los Angeles Review of Books: How to Remember My Mother - August 21, 2017 - A new book by Colin Dayan, Robert Penn Warren Professor in Humanities and professor of law, is excerpted.

Utah Standard News: Trump’s threat to withdraw from NAFTA may hit a hurdle: The U.S. Constitution - August 16, 2017 - Whether you agree with President Donald Trump or not, his threat to unilaterally back out of NAFTA and other trade deals on his hit list may be a hollow one for a simple reason: The U.S. Constitution. Our country’s founding document places limits on a president’s ability to cease complying with the provisions of a U.S. trade agreement — absent congressional approval, writes Tim Meyer, professor of law, in this piece first published by The Conversation.

Tribune-Democrat (Pennsylvania): Opinion: Legislator-led prayer could end up in Supreme Court - August 15, 2017 - Rowan County, North Carolina’s, practice of having its board of commissioners lead off meetings with prayer violates the establishment clause, a divided full panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled. The decision very well could be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court and may be a good candidate for high court review, writes David Hudson, adjunct professor of law and ombudsman of the First Amendment Center, in a piece first published on the website of the Newseum Institute.

Slate: Opinion: No free speech for you - August 7, 2017 - David Hudson, adjunct professor of law, writes that the 2006 Supreme Court decision Garcetti v. Ceballos has dramatically reduced the level of free speech protection for public employees.

Law 360: Op-Ed: It may be time to downsize the 9th Circuit - July 31, 2017 - With Republicans in charge in Washington, D.C., splitting the Ninth Circuit is back on the agenda. Many people think that only rank partisanship favors a split, but I think there is a nonpartisan, good government reason to consider it: Smaller circuits make fewer outlier decisions, writes Brian Fitzpatrick, professor of law.

The Conversation: Government action isn’t enough for climate change. The private sector can cut billions of tons of carbon - June 22, 2017 - With President Trump’s announcement to pull the United States out of the Paris Agreement, many other countries around the world – and cities and states within the U.S. – are stepping up their commitments to address climate change. But one thing is clear: Even if all the remaining participating nations do their part, governments alone can’t substantially reduce the risk of catastrophic climate change, writes coauthors Michael Vandenbergh, David Daniels Allen Distinguished Professor of Law, and Jonathan Gilligan, associate professor of earth and environmental sciences.

Smithsonian: The Namesake of Howard University Spent Years Kicking Native Americans Off of Their Land - May 23, 2017 - The idea that something important is in store for us is a deeply American faith, rooted in Cotton Mather’s examinations of “God’s providence” in the New World and extending to evangelical pastor Rick Warren’s popular attempt to answer the question, “What on earth am I here for?” But this source of strength has a sharp edge. Oliver Otis Howard’s life forces us to ask: What do we do when our grand sense of purpose does not last—or, worse yet, fails us? Daniel Sharfstein, Tarkington Professor of Law and professor of history, writes about abolitionist Howard and the Nez Perce War in Thunder in the Mountains, Chief Joseph, Oliver Otis Howard, and the Nez Perce War.

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The Young Lawyer (American Bar Association): Opinion: Try (legal) hacking around - February 17, 2017 - J.B. Ruhl, David Daniels Allen Distinguished Professor of Law, writes about the growing importance of “legal hacking,” which involves bringing together legal and technological experts to solve practical problems of community access to law and justice.

The Washington Post: Opinion: Calling the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist group would hurt all American MuslimsArjun Sethi, adjunct professor of law, writes that the White House’s talk of designating the Muslim Brotherhood a foreign terrorist organization will have ramifications far beyond the Middle East, where the group primarily operates. The result is likely to be intimidation, harassment and smears of Muslim and Arab groups here in the United States.

Bloomberg BNA: The United States Law Week: Lies, brains and courtrooms - January 19, 2017 - We care about lies, and for good reason. Humans have been lying to each other, and trying to separate lies from the truth, since we first began roaming this planet. Our recorded history is strewn with bizarre and desperate techniques to detect them, all breathtakingly ineffective, and we are only marginally better at it today. That could be changing because of some pretty spectacular advances in neuroscience, writes co-author Owen Jones, New York Alumni Chancellor’s Professor of Law.

The Tennessean: Opinion: An electoral loss hurts, but it’s not a tragedy - November 16, 2016 - Demonizing those who disagree with you might feel good for a while, but it only makes things worse. It makes it harder to find points of agreement, harder to compromise, harder to accept the inevitable disappointments. It spills over from politics to neighborhoods and workplaces, and makes daily life joyless, writes Suzanna Sherry, Herman O. Loewenstein Professor of Law. Don’t let your children grow up thinking that every electoral loss is a tragedy.

Boston Review: Opinion: On ice - September 21, 2016 - Colin Dayan, Robert Penn Warren Professor in the Humanities, professor of American studies and professor of law, writes that the law’s reach is tenuous in Customs and Border Protection detention facilities and that a culture of impunity prevails. As civil detainees are not convicted of any crime, the Eighth Amendment prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment does not apply, and even though detainees face harsher conditions than many in local jails or state prisons, it is much harder to raise a legal challenge because of the relatively short period of detention.

National Law Journal: Opinion: Readying the legal community for more neuroscientific evidence - September 12, 2016 - Owen Jones, New York Alumni Chancellor’s Professor of Law, writes in this opinion piece that two things increasingly intersect in litigation and policy formation nationwide. One is the long-standing dependence of law on facts that are ultimately about brain activity. The second factor driving the relevance of neurolaw, as the the new field of law and neuroscience is sometimes called, is that the past two decades have seen leaps in our ability to learn, noninvasively, about the structure and functioning of the brain. Understanding complex advances in neurolaw can aid the administration of justice.

Lawfare: Opinion: China, Russia and international law - July 11, 2016 - Whatever domestic problems China and Russia may be experiencing, the foreign policies of both countries are a growing threat to global peace and security, writes Ingrid Wuerth, Helen Strong Curry Professor of International Law. Working together, the two countries have voted to block important U.N. Security Council action on Syria. And now they have signed a joint declaration on international law, signaling more concerted action going forward.

The Conversation: Opinion: Limiting access to payday loans may do more harm than good - June 6, 2016 - Paige Marta Skiba, professor of law, writes that oversight of payday loans is necessary, but enacting rules that will decimate the payday loan industry will not solve any problems. If one credit option is cut off, low-income borrowers will turn to the next best thing, which is likely to be a worse, more expensive alternative.

The Conversation: Explainer: how campus policies limit free speech - June 1, 2016 - Ideally, colleges and universities would foster an exchange of competing and controversial ideas. The reality is much different. Some colleges and universities limit discourse by silencing speech that might offend others through so-called speech codes and free speech zones, writes David Hudson, adjunct professor of law. Reprinted in the Huffington Post.

The Tennessean: Opinion: Artificial intelligence impacts legal profession - March 30, 2016 - The strength of artificial intelligence lies in its effect on the ways we do our jobs — jobs we might have assumed would always be performed by humans. And near the top of that list? The legal profession, writes, Larry W. Bridgesmith, adjunct professor of law and coordinator of the Program on Law and Innovation at Vanderbilt Law School.

Forbes: Opinion: How much will climate change rules benefit Americans? - February 9, 2016 - W. Kip Viscusi, University Distinguished Professor of Law, Economics and Management and co-director of the Ph.D. Program in Law and Economics, co-wrote this article, which argues that the federal government has a duty to provide information about the reductions in domestic climate damages that may result from federal regulation. The current approach of reporting only the global benefits without providing estimates of the domestic benefits neglects that duty.

The Washington Post: These are the 10 most effective lawmakers in the U.S. Congress - December 28, 2015 - In a post on The Washington Post’s Monkey Cage blog, Alan Wiseman, associate professor of political science and law, and University of Virginia political scientist Craig Volden write, “Public approval of Congress is near historic lows. Journalists, scholars, and presidential candidates regularly express frustration with Congress’s inability to get anything done. So which members of the U.S. House are skilled at overcoming gridlock and successfully making laws?”

Salon: Pope Francis is scaring the hell out of conservatives. Here’s the real reason why - September 26, 2015 - Edward Rubin, University Professor of Law and Political Science, writes that Republican legislators who attended Pope Francis’ address to Congress were apparently relieved that he said human activity is causing “environmental deterioration,” rather than using the dreaded words “climate change” or “global warming.” But what remains clear, Rubin says, is that they won’t listen to anyone about the subject—not the overwhelming majority of scientists, not economists, not public policy analysts, and not the world’s most famous religious leader.

The Tennessean: Opinion: Students need to know more about Islam, not less - September 22, 2015 - Edward Rubin, University Professor of Law and Political Science, writes that if we don’t teach our future citizens to understand Islam, and make distinctions among Islamic nations, the foreign policy those citizens support will almost certainly be ineffective and may well have tragic consequences.

Casetext: Opinion: Some Reflections on King v. Burwell - July 9, 2015 - James Blumstein, University Professor of Constitutional Law and Health Law and Policy, writes that no matter what one thinks of the outcome of the Supreme Court’s recent ruling on the Affordable Care Act, the court’s approach—purportedly saving the law from itself—is stunning, even Orwellian.

Washington Post: Opinion: Jim Blumstein on why the procedural posture of King v. Burwell might matter - June 24, 2015 - Jim Blumstein, University Professor of Constitutional Law and Health Law and Policy, writes that the broad implications of the Supreme Court’s decision on the Affordable Care Act have been front and center for a long time, but that lost in the discussion is the importance of the procedural posture of the litigation. The story also was reported in Forbes.

The Washington Post: James Blumstein on the King oral argument - March 5, 2015 - The much-awaited Supreme Court oral argument in King v. Burwell took place Wednesday. A review of the transcript indicates that the lawyers – Solicitor General Donald Verrilli and Petitioners’ Counsel Michael Carvin – brought their A game. And so did the justices, writes James Blumstein, University Professor of Constitutional Law and Health Law and Policy.

The Washington Post: James Blumstein on the Administration, the IRS and the ACA: Will the courts rein in the president’s pen? - February 27, 2015 - The pending Supreme Court case King v. Burwell calls into question the validity of an Internal Revenue Service regulation that provides for subsidies for income-qualified persons who purchase medical insurance on federally-run exchanges. The IRS regulation being challenged in King is a piece of the overall Obama Administration strategy of unilaterally extending executive power, writes James Blumstein, University Professor of Constitutional Law and Health Law and Policy.